When animal welfare officers in Richmond, Virginia, answered a call about a dog inside a mailbox, they didn't know what to think. They assumed — and hoped — the unusual call was a prank.
“We thought the call was a joke,” Christie Peters, director of Richmond
Animal Care & Control (ACC), told The Dodo. “It couldn't be possible.”
But the call was very real.
Rescuers rushed to the neighborhood and were stunned by what they found: a tiny 1-year-old Yorkshire terrier mix zipped inside a soft-sided pet carrier and stuffed into a mailbox.
Peters said she and her colleagues felt “disbelief and anger at such a ridiculously inhumane act.”
The officers went to talk to the homeowners whose mailbox had been used, hoping they might know where the dog had come from. Unfortunately, they had no idea.
“They were unaware of the dog in their mailbox and were very helpful and kind,” Peters said.
Thankfully, the little dog appeared unharmed. And once she was freed from the carrier, she seemed relieved to be safe.
Peters said the terrier was doing well. While her fur was badly matted, her rescuers helped clean her up, and before long, her coat was soft and fluffy. Better yet, the little dog quickly revealed her true personality.
“She was sweet and snuggly,” Peters said.
One of the officers who saved her, Chloe Houston, named her Mail Order Bride.
Now the team at Richmond ACC is working to figure out how the gentle dog ended up in the mailbox, and who abandoned her there.
In the meantime, she's receiving plenty of love and attention from her rescuers.
“Her days are filled with lots of love from our staff,” Peters said.
Once she's ready, Mail Order Bride will be available for adoption and searching for the forever home she deserves. “We are so grateful someone called us to help,” Peters added. “Our team is here to help all the unwanted abandoned animals in Richmond. We’re grateful to be able to help this one.“
