At least in my country, if there’s an “obstacle” on the road, it’s every driver’s duty to remove it. And that includes dead animals. But when this person spotted a dog that, according to them, had been no longer alight, they were late for a meeting. So, as every mindful citizen should, they notified the local authorities instead.
“We can get anywhere from 8 to 16 calls a day, ranging from barking complaints to concerns for stray animals, [and beyond],” Erika Cole, the Director of Providence Animal Control told Bored Panda. She’s also in charge of their Facebook page. “Rarely are calls fake or untrue, more often we get to be the referees between citizens to resolve problems and rescue animals! We have officers working from 7 am to 11 pm and in that time frame, a lot can happen!”
“So when we get that call, we are always fearing the worst. Normally, we call the constituent to see if there is any more information such as; is the animal still alive, is there an owner on scene etc. If the animal is, in fact, deceased, we will treat the animal with dignity and hold that animal for the 5-day stray hold to try to make contact with an owner to provide closure. At that point, we can guide the owner how best to utilize cremation services. If the animal is injured, we drive that animal right to the Veterinary ER for assessment and continue to try and make contact with the owner while providing the animal with care.”
However, when the Providence Animal Control Center’s officers arrived at the scene this time, they had a huge laugh about it. “This case was a much-needed laugh!” Cole said. “I was skeptical at first due to the area consisting of mostly stores and shops versus homes/residential. We were all very relieved to find out [what it actually was].”
More info: Facebook
The Providence Animal Control Center has just had one of its most memorable investigations
Image credits: Providence Animal Control Center
“A day or two after Thanksgiving, we received a similar complaint of a bag of dead cats and mummified kittens,” Cole added. “Of course, that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up and you go in to ‘I’ll find you’ mode. The kind complainant was very upset and even sent a screenshot of Google Maps to show us exactly where the bag was. Once the ACO arrived at the scene, she called me to say that the bag contained someone’s turkey dinner…or, what was left of it and that the mummified kittens turned out to be stuffing. A child who lived across the street came out to see what was going on and asked the officer why she was going through a bag of someone’s Thanksgiving dinner?!! Regardless of how silly or serious a call may or may not be, we are very grateful that our citizens take on the task of being the eyes and ears of Providence.”
Also, a cat called Julius has spent a year at the center and blossomed into a beautiful feline. If you or somebody you know is thinking about a new pet, consider Julius as he’s up for adoption! For more information, click here.
To help the Providence Animal Care & Control Center protect animals, consider donating here.
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