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Alex Cabrero ReportingA Boxer, severely injured after being dragged behind a pickup, is still alive and now up for adoption.
A Richfield rescue shelter took the dog in after someone dropped off it off. The individual told the shelter the dog was in the back of a truck going down the road, when the dog fell out, while tied to a chain.
"Got dragged several miles before they even noticed, and the exhaust burned her face off," Nellie Mooney, with Mooney's Boxer Rescue said.
Shelter workers immediately changed the dog's name from "Tear" to "Sweetie.
"She's missing her ear, can hear. And then she has burns clear down her face and half of her neck," said Lance Mooney.
Now, she might also lose her eye.
Lance Mooney said, "If we can't save the eye, she's missing an eyelid, and we're gonna see if we can get the swelling down, and then maybe do a little surgery to see if we can save it, and if we can't, then the eye is gonna have to come out."
Since Sweetie has been at the home, which also just happens to be a Boxer rescue shelter, she's been acting better. However, even though her personality right now seems to be fine, there's still a lot of work that needs to be done to her, and that work isn't going to be cheap.
"They're going to be quite extensive, and it might go on for several months," Nellie said.
Right now police aren't involved in this case. Sweetie will be put up for adoption during the Richfield Animal Expo, June 2nd. In the meantime, Mooney's Boxer Rescue has set up a fund at any Zions bank branch under their's and Sweeties name.
Investigators have not said whether animal abuse caused Sweetie's injuries, but the issue in Utah has had the backing of a high profile "poster dog."
Henry, a Chihuahua mix, has walked with his owner several times on Capitol Hill to support a bill that would make animal torture a felony. Henry survived being put in a hot oven for five minutes.
Activists say animal abuse is often linked to spousal and child abuse. Utah lawmakers ran out of time before they got a chance to vote on it this year.
If you'd like to contact Mooney's Boxer Rescue, you can call them at 435-896-6404.
