A Florida woman’s disabled dog has been found dead after she was stolen along with her car on Thursday (October 3).
The beloved shepherd-husky mix, named Zorra, was found inside the 2005 Volvo station wagon after it was discovered abandoned in Lauderdale Lakes on Monday (October 7).
Zorra had been inside owner Wanda Ferrari’s car when she nipped into a Dollar Tree store in Oakland Park.
Ferrari left her Volvo running with the air conditioning on to keep the pup cool while she was in the shop, however when she returned both the car and the dog were gone.
Hear about the theft here:
As per NBC New York, a towing company reported to the Broward Sheriff’s Office on Monday night about the stolen car, BSO officials said the following day.
They also confirmed that no arrests have been made.
Zorra had been a constant companion for Ferrari, who is dealing with a reoccurrence of breast cancer. The disabled dog used a pink wheelchair to get around as her back legs were paralysed and her front legs didn’t work, though she was not in her wheelchair when the car was stolen.
According to CBS Miami, the loving owner sobbed as she addressed the person who stole her pet, saying:
If you have her please bring her back. She’s been my whole life. I rescued her and she rescued me.
A $2,000 ‘no questions asked’ reward was offered to anyone who could help police find Zorra, put up by 100+ Abandoned Dogs of Everglades Florida. The group had also paid for a pet detective to help locate Zorra.
The organisation shared a ‘missing’ sign for Zorra to Facebook, where they described her as ‘a 13-year-old, spayed, female, black/white, Husky/Shepherd mix weighing 45 lbs’.
Recalling her reaction to seeing the car gone, Ferrari said:
I was in shock. Who would take a car with a dog? They probably didn’t know.
100+ Abandoned Dogs of Everglades Florida shared Ferrari’s plea on Facebook, where many people expressed their hopes for the dog’s safe return.
One person judged the owner’s decision to leave the dog in the car, saying Ferrari is ‘not a good pet owner’. However the organisation responded saying ‘her dog was her entire life. There is a lot more to the story’.
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.