On September 17, 2014, Gordo, a one-year-old Maltese mix from Culver City, Calif., became a victim of a high-speed chase. Police attempted to stop a stolen van and detain the drivers when the vehicle ran over the pet. The dog suffered a broken pelvis and a mangled right, hind leg. He was rushed to City of Angels Veterinary Specialty Center and veterinarians worked arduously to fix his injuries and save his leg.
Twenty-one-year-old Yovany Ervin Rodriguez of Los Angeles and 26-year-old Gwendi Yarubi Valenton of Bakersfield allegedly stole the vehicle and took off speeding through several intersections. Police used spikes to blow off the tires, but the fugitives continued driving the car even though it was running on its rims and sparking off the road.
Gordo was home when he heard police sirens and went outside to investigate. The curious dog walked onto the road and unfortunately got ran over by the speeding van. The accident was captured by a news helicopter transmitting the high-speed chase live.
The wounded dog was able to go back home. His owner, Santos Son, found the pet hiding in the bathroom and rushed him to the nearest animal clinic.
There, veterinarians ran exams and told the dog owner that Gordo’s hind leg could be saved through surgery or amputated. Son opted to try to save his pet’s leg.
The surgery was performed the following day and vets are optimistic the curious dog will make a full recovery.
“In the long term, [Gordo] hopefully will have a very good result, running, jumping, playing, going wild,” said veterinarian Dr. Kim Carey.
TV viewers who watched the accident live donated thousands of dollars to cover the dog’s surgery. Son is grateful for the outpouring generosity because without it he wouldn’t be able to afford his dog’s surgery.
Ervin Rodriguez  and Yarubi Valenton were apprehended shortly after running over Gordo.
