The discovery of a badly wounded dog, abandoned in a parking lot, has some animal advocates concerned about organized animal abuse in Alberta.
A one and a half year old pit bull named Hercules was brought to the Edmonton Humane Society two weeks ago after being found by a member of the public at a west end Costco.
“He has both fresh wounds and older wounds,” said Edmonton Humane Society spokesman Warren Dean. “They’re puncture wounds. They’re obviously from another animal, whether that be wildlife or another dog.”
Dean says the dog isn’t micro-chipped so there is no way to find the owner or determine where the dog came from, “It’s a mystery,” he said Friday afternoon.
Terra MacLean, from Second Chance Animal Rescue (SCARS), says these kinds of cases are popping up more often.
“We’ve seen a lot of it within the last year. More dogs with battle injuries, more dogs with duct tape, more dogs that looked like the victims of a dog fight,” said MacLean.
While MacLean concedes there is no hard evidence, she believes dog fighting is happening in Alberta and she worries certain animals are more vulnerable.
“My biggest concern is for the people that advertise their dogs for free on Kijiji and stuff like that.”
At this point, the Edmonton Humane Society says linking Hercules' injuries to dog fighting is only speculative, “I think the most concerning part is that there’s the potential that something is out there … that people are abusing animals.”
Alberta RCMP tells CTV News they haven’t investigated any specific complaints about dog fighting recently.
With files from Dan Grummett
