Wantagh shelter seeks home for abandoned dog

She was left alone, tied to a light pole on the westbound Southern State Parkway, near Exit 21, in Uniondale.

All she had was a water bowl, and a note that read, “This is Roxi. A trained American Bullmastiff. She is four years old. She has been fed and given a flea bath, she may still have issues with them. See that she gets good care.”

Roxi, later more accurately identified as an English mastiff, was abandoned on the parkway on the morning of July 1. State troopers retrieved her after responding to a call reporting a dog tied to a pole at around 5:30 a.m. They dropped her off at the Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter in Wantagh, where she was examined by veterinarians who found her to be hungry and underweight, but otherwise in good health.

“She’s nervous, but she’s very sweet,” Ashley Behrens, the acting director of the shelter, said. “Obviously it’s traumatic what she went through, so nervousness is to be expected.”

Now Roxi is looking for a home, and law enforcement officers are looking for whoever left her on the side of the road.

“We’re going to find a home for this dog and, working with our Nassau D.A., we’re going to find these culprits and hold them accountable,” Town Supervisor Don Clavin said at a July 3 news conference outside the shelter.

Joining Clavin were county District Attorney Anne Donnelly and State Police Capt. Timothy Gleason. Donnelly said that her office and investigators were working with State Police to help find the person who abandoned Roxi, adding that anyone who recognized her should contact the State Police or the D.A.’s office.

The charges, according to Donnelly, could include abandoning an animal, a misdemeanor, or aggravated cruelty, a felony.

“Where we are able, we will prosecute them aggressively,” she said.

Dog abandonment is not uncommon, Donnelly noted, but what happened to Roxi was especially dangerous, because the Southern State is one of the most heavily traveled, and treacherous, highways on Long Island.

“It is no place to abandon a 4-year-old puppy,” Donnelly said. “It is unacceptable, and leaving a note with well wishes just doesn’t cut it. There is no excuse for dumping a dog on the side of a major highway.”

Gleason said that if Roxi had broken away from her leash, she would have put herself and motorists on the parkway in harm’s way. He added that people can fall on hard times, leaving them unable to afford to care for a pet, but abandoning an animal beside a highway is neither acceptable nor a safe option.

“While it appears that the owner may have had good intentions,” Gleason said, “if a person is unable to care for a dog, there are better ways of handling such a situation.”

Donnelly explained that dog owners who cannot continue to care for their pets should take them to an animal shelter or a veterinarian’s office, which will help find them a new home.

“Any of those options are better than tying a defenseless creature to a pole on a roadway where cars are going 60 miles an hour past it,” she said.

Donnelly added that Long Island is now experiencing the hottest weather of the year, when pets should not be left outside for extended periods, or in hot cars. A few minutes in a hot vehicle in extreme high temperatures, she said, can be deadly for an animal.

“Leaving an animal to bake in the sun is nothing short of cruel,” Donnelly said.

While Roxi’s situation was heart-wrenching, Clavin said he had seen good come from the incident. The town had received over 50 phone calls, locally and from as far away as California and Washington, from people looking to adopt or find a home for her.

“With the tragedy of what’s happened, you do see the goodness of people,” Clavin said. “You see the goodness of people who want to find a loving home for this animal.”

The investigation was continuing at press time, and anyone with information was encouraged to call the State Police, at (631) 756-3300. Gleason says that callers could remain anonymous.