Jul 18, 2008 6:38 am US/Mountain
Dog Recovers From Leap Onto I-70 In Denver
DENVER (AP/CBS4) ―
A dog that jumped from a vehicle going 55 mph on Interstate 70 is recovering, although it has been separated from its owners.
The German Shepherd mix was in a boat being hauled by a car Friday when she jumped for an unknown reason.
Jackie Batts of Evergreen was driving behind the car, saw the dog jump and slammed on her brakes. She pulled over to pick up the bruised dog covered with road rash.
"It seemed to hit its head and kind of laid on its side and rolled a few times," said Batts.
She says she refused to let the dog's owners take the dog and took it to a veterinarian.
The dog has been recovering at Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital, where she was named Shadow. A hospital employee plans to adopt the dog.
Veterinarian Elisa Mazzaferro says dogs in vehicles should be properly restrained so they don't get hurt.
Investigators tracked down the dog's old owners in Arizona. They were an elderly couple who gave the animal to a neighbor who gave it to a friend.
That friend was driving from Arizona to Wisconsin through Colorado when Shadow leaped from the boat. Authorities say that friend, who was driving at the time, faces charges of animal cruelty.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
