Palmetto Dogs Mission

History: Since at least December 2008 3 dogs had been living on Interstate 85 at the Palmetto exit, exit 56. No one seemed to be able to actually find them. Once sighting them, they would be gone before we could stop. Someone from another rescue group dropped off 2 large bags of food in February between the grassy wooded area that divides the south on-ramp and the interstate itself. This is where she had last seen them, and when last seen one was extremely thin.

Once I heard about the situation I went out on a daily basis walking and looking for any signs of them. Finally, the first of March we spotted all 3 dogs laying in the sun on that same area. We were able to get two of the dogs, one a male Bluetick Coonhound mix and the other a female Pointer/Lab mix we think. When the male saw me you could tell he wanted to come but he was unsure, until I knelt down and talked to him and then he came to me and wanted to go right to the truck as if saying "Please, get me out of here!" The female was not so sure, but she wanted to be with him so she stayed close but would not come. It took some time, we got him back out of the truck and just sat there for a couple hours until we got her to come closer to him and then we lured her in to eat cheesecake with him and I was able to toss a looped rope over her head and pull her in. She was very thin with all rib, spine and hip bones exposed. The other dog which appears to be an Austrailian Shepherd took off like a bullet half way down the grass bank. She only stopped for a moment to look back but she turned and ran across the on ramp and into the woods.

The Bluetick mix and the Pointer-Lab mix they are doing well. All in all they are in good health with the exception of the male having an injured leg which is healing and the female being way too thin. They have tested negative for heart worms and parasites and have now had all their shots. The female is quite attached to the male. There is no telling how long they have actually been on their own or whether they have always been together or just met up along the way but she loves him. The vet believes he is approximately 2-3 yrs.

I am trying to find out if anyone has actually lost them, they are well behaved and seem to love truck rides. They seem to also be house-broken not having one accident yet. They are good natured happy dogs that also love children. They can dig under a fence but they do not appear to be jumpers and only seem to dig to get from one yard space closer to the house to be with me :) They are not trying to actually dig out of the yard. Not sure how they are with cats but they like the water.

With the good graces of both Guthrie Construction and Ken Kunkle, MCI Grading Superintendent, we were able to save two of these dogs. We are being allowed to continue tracking the last dog on the land where they are doing much work in hopes of saving the Aussie as well. If owners are not found, these dogs will need homes soon. Interested people can email gaheartland@live.com .

D. Ginn
Georgia Heartland Humane Society

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