Schenectady Police search for clues in abused dog case

A severely neglected and abused dog found in Schenectady continues to recover.

The most glaring injury is an ear that appears to be cut off, along with injuries to other parts of her body, including her teeth.

The dog is believed to be about 6 years old, police said. She was found in the area of Eastern Parkway and McClellan streets Saturday evening.

A Good Samaritan took the dog home, and then called police the next day when they realized just how badly the dog was hurt.

“When we saw the condition that she was in, we rushed her immediately to Mohawk Hudson Humane Society, where she’s still receiving care right now,” said Lt. Ryan Macherone, with Schenectady Police Department.

“The hard part is, especially with children and animals, oftentimes they can’t communicate as to what happened to them,” said Macherone. “So in this case, we’re trying to put those pieces together.”

One possibility investigators are looking into is if the dog was part of a dog-fighting operation.

“It’s not out of the realm of possibility with having her ears cut like that and then also her teeth having been broken. That’s certainly something that our investigators have not ruled out, and we’re looking at right now,” he said.

Someone arrested in this case would likely be charged with several felonies, Macherone said.

Staff at the animal shelter have named the dog Lavender. She’s quickly warming up to her rescuers.

“The sad part is she’s a very sweet dog and took to our animal control officer right away, was very friendly with the folks that helped her out.”

Macherone said he thinks one of the saddest parts of this case is that the dog is still is very trusting of people — even with everything that happened to her.

Anyone with information is asked to call 518-382-5245 or 518-788-6566.