Authorities in the US state of Indiana, are asking for public help and cooperation after finding two dogs inside a cage under a tarp without water.
According to Police Department, the dogs were found in a street in the town of Connersville, about 120kms south-east of Indianapolis
They were “hot and lethargic” inside the cage due to heat and lack of air flow, officers said.
The animals had also defecated inside the crate and were confined in a very small area, where movement was nearly impossible, police said.
The owners left a note to “surrender” the dogs to whoever found them and left a bag of dog food and small amount of water in the cage, according to police.
The dogs, named Kilo and Rosco, were handed to a local animals shelter, despite it already being over capacity.
The Connersville Police Department asked anyone with interest in adopting the dogs or any other pets to contact the Fayette County Animal Shelter.
Veterinarians warn of rising cases of mystery dog illness
Veterinarians are sounding the alarm as they see a growing number of coughing dogs.
Wendy Brown’s three golden retrievers — Bridge, Dooley and Lulu — are among the dogs who started showing symptoms earlier this November.
“Dooley started doing kind of this huffing and also seemed to feel quite lethargic,” Brown recalled to “Good Morning America.” “Not too long after, Bridge began to exhibit the symptoms. But his were louder, more boisterous. I thought it was his stomach because he made like a retching sound.”
Initially, Brown thought her pets had a typical kennel cough but when their symptoms didn’t subside, she knew it was something more serious.
“The vet started him on a 10-day cycle of doxycycline. Today was day 10 and he is not a lot better,” Brown said.
Brown, an Idaho resident, said she’s still not sure what could have caused her dogs’ illness in the first place.
While research is underway, veterinarians say the mystery illness is highly contagious and can be fatal. Reported symptoms so far have also been typical of a kennel cough and they include coughing, sneezing, nasal and/or eye discharge and lethargy.
“Instead of that dry cough where the dog felt good, it was now this wet cough where the dog felt sick,” Amanda Cavanagh, the section head of the urgent care service at Colorado State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, told “GMA.”
Experts like Cavanagh said any dogs showing signs of consistent coughing should be brought to a vet to be examined.
“We can ultrasound the lungs to see if there is a problem that is related to pneumonia or the contagious pneumonia that seems to be going around,” Cavanagh said.
Cavanagh also recommends keeping any coughing dogs away from other dogs and for two weeks after the cough goes away.
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