ELKHART — It’s an amazing story out of Elkhart. A dog is recovering after being stabbed in the chest with a homemade wooden spear almost two feet long.

A local veterinarian says it's lucky to be alive.

“It’s amazing that this dog survived,” said veterinarian Dr. Shelia Hartnett.

Meet Tank, a 5-year-old pit bull. Last month, someone stabbed him with a spear inside his pen at an Elkhart home.

Dr. Hartnett performed emergency surgery, pulling an 8.5-inch piece of wood from his chest.

“I just started pulling and I was just saying my prayers that everything was going to be OK,” she said. “It was right underneath his heart. I couldn't tell if it penetrated it or not. It was such an extensive injury."

She says it was a miracle Tank survived.

“It’s just a terrible thing that happened to this animal,” she said. “The object that was used was whittled to a point."

Police who are investigating the incident say they can't believe that someone would go this far to inflict so much pain on an animal.

"It’s really senseless,” said Lt. Ed Windbigler of the Elkhart Police. “An animal is somewhat like a child. They're defenseless and when a human decides to hurt an animal in any way, it’s absolutely ridiculous, and pretty much shameless like child abuse. That dog has no way of defending himself, especially if it's locked in a pen."

“The way that the wound entered the body, you could tell it’s an intentional injury,” Dr. Hartnett said.

Dr. Hartnett is hoping to find a new home for Tank. She is looking for someone who is serious about taking care of this special dog.