Ten months after a German shepherd was stolen from Bob Moreland’s Miramar home, the canine is back in his owner's loving arms after a horrifying ordeal.
Tears of joy streamed down Moreland’s face when he was reunited with the dog, Black Jack.
“I didn’t know I’d ever see him again,” said Moreland, a retired Air Force sergeant.
Somehow Black Jack ended up wandering around Century Village in Pembroke Pines. Laurie Simmons, the president of Big Dog Ranch Rescue in Wellington, was notified and sent volunteer Eric Weinberger to help bring the dog to safety.
But when Weinberger arrived, he was alarmed by what he saw.
“I saw this God-awful collar around his neck I’ve never seen before,” Weinberger said. “Laurie told me it was a collar used for bait dog in a dog-fighting ring.”
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Black Jack was being used as a bait dog, and a chain with raw meat also had been attached to his neck to lure dogs to fight. The dog was maimed.
“The collar had worn through his skin,” said Dr. Susan Baker. “It was so tight it had imbedded into his flesh.”
The volunteers and staff worked to nurse the dog back to health and reunite him with his owner. The dog’s implanted microchip led them to Moreland.
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And now, Moreland and volunteers at the rescue try to erase the horror Black Jack endured.
Now safe from harm, the dog is on the road to recovery.
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