MACON, Ga. — This week, the Humane Society of the United States is offering a $5,000 reward in the case of an abused puppy.
On May 21, the Bibb County Sheriff's Office said two people threw a 10-week-old puppy off a bridge and drove off.
"It had fractured bones that were old and new, and so what it's doing is it's leading us to believe that it wasn't just a one time incident," Case Manager of Animal Crimes at the Humane Society of the United States Kassi Bennett said.
Bennett helps local law enforcement solve their animal abuse cases. She said the puppy was thrown off a bridge on Mead Road. A witness saw it happen, and helped save the puppy.
"It's not something that was based off of someone's ability to feed them, and the dog got skinny. This was malicious. It was done with intent," Bennett said.
She said the intent seems clear. Two men zipped the puppy in a backpack and threw him over on a bridge that has railroad tracks under it.
The puppy, who they named Guy Paine after the Macon road, somehow survived the fall. Now, he's got a lot of healing ahead of him. Bennett said many of the injuries seemed old, suggesting weeks of torture before the dog was thrown from the bridge.
Guy was taken to SOS Rescue GA, where they saw he had broken bones. According to their Facebook page, Guy had surgery on Monday to get one of his eyes removed.
"It not only is going to have to endure the physical trauma, but mental trauma. Animals do suffer from that as well, but it's going to take a lot of time for that puppy to gain trust again," Bennett said.
Because of the severity of this case, she said the two men need to be found sooner than later.
"Studies show that there is a link between animal cruelty and a multitude of other crimes, (such as) violence against other people," Bennett said.
She said Georgia has strict laws against animal cruelty, but those will happen only if someone comes forward.
"That would go under aggravated animal cruelty which would reach the level of torture, which fortunately is a felony, so hopefully we can get some good tips from this reward," Bennett
If you have any information on the case, you can call the Bibb County Sheriff's office at 478-751-7500 or Macon Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-877-68CRIME.
Anyone with relevant information can report tips anonymously to 478-751-7500.
There is a $5,000 reward for tips that lead to an arrest.