The Geauga County Dog Warden in Ohio is seeking a forever home for a dog rescued after being shot with a shotgun by an unidentified person. The shelter said the dog, whom they named Skittles, has roughly 70 pellets lodged in his body.
Vet unable to remove 70 shotgun pellets in dog, authorities continue to look for suspect
Matt Granito with the Geauga County Dog Warden told 3WKYC News that a local resident spotted Skittles roaming around their neighborhood for two weeks straight. Each time the concerned woman tried to help Skittles, the pup would run away. Then on Feb. 24, she came across Skittles in a heart-wrenching state; he had blood all over him.
“It’s shot in the back end, so whoever shot it, obviously the dog wasn’t coming towards him or feeling a threat,” Granito explained, adding, “So, this is why we’re worried about why this dog was shot — was it doing something wrong or was it just someone who maliciously tried to hurt this dog?”
Granito further shared, “It’s just such a sweet dog. I couldn’t believe that someone would have to shoot the dog because it had any aggressive tendencies or anything.”
Unfortunately, a veterinarian confirmed they couldn’t remove the pellets from Skittles’ body. This is because they were too many and removing them could cause more damage and trauma to the poor dog. For this reason, Skittles will have to live with the pellets. Sadly, some pellets pierced his lungs, causing the liquid to enter.
“There’s so many, they can’t get them out, so at this point they’re just going to stay in there,” Granito revealed. “The veterinary believes he can make a full recovery, but lead poisoning is obviously a serious issue,” he added.
Shotgun pellets often contain lead, which can leach into the tissues while inside the body. Skittles is currently at a foster home and will be up for adoption as soon as next week.
Meanwhile, authorities have launched an investigation into the incident. They’re appealing to anyone with information that could lead to an arrest of the person behind Skittles misfortune to contact them.
