Starved, blind dog “Treasure” found in Burton dumpster. Beaufort Co. police are searching for the owner
Desperate yelping from a dumpster in the Burton area helped save the life of a badly abused poodle. As the 10-year-old puppy – affectionately known as “Treasure” – begins a long recovery, Beaufort County police are seeking to charge his owner with animal cruelty.
The treasure was found early Thursday morning by a “good Samaritan” at a S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) office in northern Beaufort County on Parker Drive. According to a statement from the Beaufort division of nonprofit Noah’s Arks Rescue on Saturday morning, the employee heard “yapping and screaming” coming from the parking lot dumpster when he opened it and found the dog in a sealed trash bag with trash and dirty diapers.
The woman used a piece of fence to rip open the bag and free the dog. At this point, the dumpster was supposed to have been picked up and compacted – but the garbage truck was 30 minutes late that morning.
Beaufort County Animal Services took Treasure to Port Royal Veterinary Hospital, where Chief Veterinarian Dr. Marikay Campbell “stopped everything” to help the dog survive. He was severely malnourished, covered in feces and urine, and had up to three inches of matted fur covering his entire body and face. The dog is also blind and has cataracts in both eyes.
Veterinary staff removed two pounds of fur from Treasure, who weighed just 10 pounds total. Due to the dog’s condition, he was likely “confined to a kennel for most of his life,” the Noah’s Arks post said.
Doctors say Treasure still has a number of medical issues that require treatment. They give him “lots of small meals” to avoid “refeeding syndrome,” a potentially fatal condition that can occur when food is resumed quickly after a long period of starvation. Dr. Campbell will also examine Treasure’s eyes to see if surgery could restore his vision.
“Treasure is a sweet, sweet puppy who gave kisses to all the staff yesterday,” the Noah’s Arks employee wrote. “He is a loving dog despite his abuse and neglect.”
In hopes of being prosecuted, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public to provide any information that could link Treasure to his owner. Police are also trying to find a DNA match in the used diapers the dog was found in.
Anyone with information about Treasure’s owner is asked to call Sgt. Swalm at 843-255-3215 or the anonymous Crime Stoppers of the Lowcountry hotline at 843-554-1111.
Port Royal Veterinary Hospital has no further information on the situation and is advising residents with information to only call the sheriff’s office, it said in a Facebook post Saturday morning.
