Lucky dog: Dog rescued after being found frozen to road

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John M. Steiner / The Sun Levi Harrington of Jamestown sits Tuesday with Shelby, an 87-pound bulldog mix he and Jordan Stutsman rescued from the elements on Friday. The dog was found frozen to the ground and partially covered with snow.

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Last Friday, as freezing rain and snow were coming down and road conditions became worse by the hour, Shelby, a 6-year-old bulldog mix, lay frozen to a road near Pipestem Reservoir.

Levi Harrington and his friend Jordan Stutsman were alerted to the dog after Levi’s father, a blade operator, spotted it out on the same road for two days.

The minimum-maintenance road is rarely traveled, and is the same road where Harrington runs with his 2-year-old German shorthair, D.J., Harrington said.

After circling the road, searching with his truck’s headlights, Harrington spotted “a clump of snow,” and found Shelby covered with ice and stuck to the gravel, laying on her left hind leg.

Harrington and Stutsman warmed the dog’s icy underbelly with their hands until Harrington was able to lift the 87-pound canine into his truck.

“I just have a big heart for dogs,” Harrington said.

Once back at his shop he started to phone friends until he reached Whitney John, daughter of Prairie Paws Recue co-founder Kaye John.

Prairie Paws helps animals in need by providing them with care, food and finding them temporary foster homes until they can find permanent owners, as well as other services, John said.

John and fellow Prairie Paws co-founder Becky Johnson found a foster location for Shelby.

“All of her energy was used to keep herself alive,” John said.

Shelby was treated for frostbite on Monday but it will be seven to 10 days before the extent of her injuries are fully known, Johnson said.

“There’s going to be some long-term medical treatments for the frostbite,” she said.

Shelby’s treatment in Jamestown included scrubbing the exposed areas of her belly, antibiotics to prevent infection and a cooling spray to provide comfort, Johnson said.

“Today she wanted to get up and walk and go outside,” she said.

By looking at Shelby’s right-rear, leg Johnson was able to see that the dog recently had surgery. After checking with area veterinarians, she found an ID for the dog and an old owner that had to give her away when she moved to California, Johnson said.

The old owner also gave the name of the individual she gave Shelby to. Johnson would not provide the person’s name.

Harrington said he believes Shelby was intentionally left outside because the road she was found on is so remote and unused.

Johnson said he has no idea how long the dog was outside for and no proof she was abandoned.

“You want to give them (animals) the same respect you’d give a person because they bring comfort in so many ways,” Johnson said.

The old owner was moved to tears about the status of her dog and sent someone from California to pick Shelby up and bring her home to California, Johnson said.

“She hopefully won’t have to worry about frostbite again,” John said.

Anyone with information on Shelby is asked to call the Stutsman County Sheriff’s Office at 252-9000.

Sun reporter Ben Rodgers can be reached at 701-952-8455

or by e-mail at brodgers@jamestownsun.com

Tags: local news, news, dog, animal, cold, rescue