Friday, January 16, 2009

Poodle left inside vehicle for 19 days

Police in Vermont, Canada are describing as "amazing" the survival of a Quebec poodle whose owner inadvertently left the animal locked in his van in an airport parking lot for 19 days over Christmas and New Year's.

Michou, a 12-year-old male miniature poodle, apparently had no food or water and endured freezing temperatures throughout the ordeal before being rescued last week.

The dog - coloured black and brown with wisps of grey - lost about half of its body weight, but is said to be recovering surprisingly well, so far, under the care of a foster family.

The poodle's owner, a man from the Canada-U.S. border town of Frelighsburg, Que., was issued a $100 ticket under an animal cruelty bylaw and has agreed to give up custody of the pet.

Investigators have concluded that the abandonment was accidental, a police spokeswoman said. "Everything we've got points to it being unintentional," said Burlington Police Lieut. Jennifer Morrison. "We don't know how or when the dog got into the car, but we do believe that the owner was not aware that this dog was in the vehicle at the time he grabbed his bags and went."

The dog's owner, Pascal Bellon, 50, has agreed to cover the costs of the dog's veterinary care, police added.

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