A dog in Atlanta, Georgia is now happily settling into a forever home after nearly losing his life to floods. A couple of weeks ago, an animal control officer happened to notice something moving in an area where flood waters were rapidly beginning to rise.
As he came closer, he saw that a dog was tied to a tree and was up to its neck in water. Officer Anthony Defore recounted his experience to WSB-TV Atlanta,
“I’m watching as the water is coming up, because it’s flooding very quickly. I saw his head bopping up and down.”
Defore then chose to risk his own wellbeing and grabbed hold of the dog’s collar, attempting to pull him up enough to untie the rope. The dog had been tied to the tree for so long that the collar bled on to his fur.
The dog was then brought to the Fulton County Animal Shelter for care. He was appropriately named “River.”
No one wanted to claim River and he tested positive for heartworm, indicating he had not had the care he needed in his previous home.
Thankfully, it did not take River long to find a new forever home. He can now get the care and attention that it seems he was lacking previously.
Regarding the risk he took, Defore doesn’t regret it for a moment. He said,
“Taking the risk with him was probably the best decision I made.”
***For the original story with video go to “Officer rescues dog from rising water”
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Fulton County Animal Services is an animal shelter being managed by LifeLine Animal Project, serving the Atlanta area. They provide a humane environment for Fulton County’s homeless pets while enforcing the animal control laws of Fulton County, GA.
Since LifeLine Animal Project began managing FCAS, the rate of euthanasia has been cut dramatically. Though not a “no-kill” shelter, they have significantly reduced the rate as they work towards saving all animals.
LifeLine Animal Project helps prevent unwanted pet litters through low-cost spay/neuter, helps make pet care affordable through low-cost and free vaccine clinics, saves the lives of special needs shelter animals through their rehabilitation facility and saves feral cats through their trap-neuter-return program. They are working to make Atlanta a lifesaving community.
