Thanks to donations from the public, the Humane Society of St. Joseph County is now offering close to $3,000 to find the person who left a dog along the side of the road to die earlier this month.

Around 12:30 p.m. on February 2, they got a call from a man who saw a pet carrier along the side of Jackson Road, near its intersection with Locust. When Human Society Officer John Minier got there, he found a dog inside the carrier, barely moving. “It was too weak even to standup,” he said. “Nothing but skin and bones, open sores on it.”

The male poodle-mix was in such bad shape, it had to be euthanized.

“It was a young dog, had a long life ahead of him,” Dr. Ecker said. “No animal should die like this, this is not right. This poor animal suffered a lot.”

The Humane Society had origionally offered $500 to find the person responsible for the animal's death, but public donations began pouring in.

Now, the reward offered for information about the person responsible is $2, 875. More than $2,300 has been donated by community members wanting answers and justice for the dog.

“Somebody starved this dog to death and somebody needs to pay,” said Dr. Ecker.

Anyone with information can call the Humane Society of St. Joseph County at (574) 255-4726.