Dog found chained to sign in Brevard has leg amputated

Titusville police search for owners of animal

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – The dog found abandoned and chained to a stop sign in Titusville had to have his hind leg amputated after suffering a severe fracture, authorities said on Monday.

Police said they found the dog, nicknamed PD or Petey, chained to a stop sign with a package of bottled water Friday morning at the intersection of Cheney Highway and Deep Marsh Road. The search for his owners is ongoing.

The dog was placed with the Brevard County Sheriff's Office Animal Services Unit off Eau Gallie Boulevard, where veterinarian Dr. Robert Edwards found Petey had a broken back leg.

He said the break was not new.

"Whoever had him when it was broken, or if he was a stray, it just never got aligned correctly," he said. "The two ends of the bone never got a chance to fuse together, and so the body does what it always does when I can't fix something. It walls it off with scar tissue."

Animal Services said that they decided to amputate PD's right leg, which was untreated for several weeks, because it was unable to bare functional weight and was a source of chronic pain. 

"We are very happy to report that PD came through the surgery with no complications and is resting comfortably," Animal Services said in an email to News 6.

Petey was woozy from pain medication when News 6 visited him Friday evening at Brevard County Animal Services.

Edwards said he believes the dog is a Shih-Tzu mix and is about 3 years old. He said the owners have five days to claim him before Petey is available for adoption. He said if his owners do come forward, they will be questioned about why he was chained to that stop sign.

"We would want to know and try to get to the bottom of what happened," Edwards said. "We're the sheriff's office, so we're going to pursue any potential animal cruelty."

After a few days of being monitored at the shelter, PD will be in a foster home with an experienced volunteer while he recovers. PD will then be available for adoption.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Titusville Police Department at 321-264-7800.​


About the Author:

Erik Sandoval joined the News 6 team as a reporter in May 2013 and became an Investigator in 2020. During his time at News 6, Erik has covered several major stories, including the 2016 Presidential campaign. He was also one of the first reporters live on the air at the Pulse Nightclub shooting.