Indianapolis Animal Care and Control is investigating after three dogs were abandoned on the property of the Humane Society of Indianapolis in the past week.
Humane Society officials said they've never seen it happen so often in such a short period of time; and putting extra pressure on a system that's already stretched.
Motion cameras captured a man getting out of a van, picking up the dog in a crate and dropping it at the front door. A day later, a woman drives up and opens the door to dump a Rottweiler out.
"He sets it down right in front of the door where staff is standing," says Christine Jeschke, Humane Society of Indianapolis Chief Operations Officer. "There's a door that says ‘Please Ring Doorbell for Assistance’. There's a sign that says, 'Don't dump animals.' There's clearly staff because you see all the cars in the parking lot. I have a dozen staff already in the premises."
Corinna Duncan was bringing in a stray cat to be surrendered when she saw the dog running loose in the parking lot.
"She could have just took off, she could have ran, she could have bit somebody," said Duncan. "[She was] dumped without a second thought, not even a look back. To see the puppy just kind of looking around, you could see she was very confused and bewildered and that's heartbreaking."
The third incident happened on Black Friday night. An employee found a two-year-old Dachshund roaming around the Canine Training School yard. The dog was adopted earlier this year.
According to a Marion County ordinance, leaving an animal on public or private property can cost you at least a $200 fine. The Human Society said while their facility is mostly full, they do not euthanize their animals for space or time.
"It's very cruel," said Jeschke. "If they need food, if they need kennel, if they need leashes, we have resources here we could provide the public if they just let us know what the situation is."
Indyhumane officials stated it can be very dangerous and even fatal to abandon animals, especially as winter weather conditions approach.
If patrons cannot care for their pets any longer, IndyHumane officials encourage them to ring the doorbell and discuss their situation with a staff member.
Indianapolis Animal Care and Control have installed security cameras around the facility and will continue their investigation into the incidents.
