A $15,000 reward is being offered in the apparent animal cruelty case involving a small dog that appears to have had wire wrapped around its muzzle for more than a month.   In addition to the $2,500 initially offered by Operation Kindness, additional contributions by The Murrell Foundation ($5,000), radio personality Russ Martin ($4,000), Dallas restauranteur Jack Knox ($1,000) and most recently The Humane Society of the United States ($2,500), now put the total at $15,000.    

The 9-pound dog, which has been named Angel, was found Friday, March 23, in the intersection of Belmont and McMillan in East Dallas.  She was wearing a plastic “E-collar,” which is normally put on an animal’s head to keep it from pawing at an incision or wound.

The dog was rescued by Diane and David Leslie of Garland, who saw her attempting to cross the street.  They took her to Operation Kindness, where the deep wounds around her muzzle were noticed.

Operation Kindness immediately took the 3-year-old spaniel-terrier mix to a veterinarian for treatment.   According to Dr. Paul Keating of Trinity Pet Hospital in Carrollton, it appeared that wire had been wrapped around the dog’s muzzle for about 6 weeks and had been removed 3 weeks before she was found and taken to Operation Kindness. 

“The wounds left by the wire completely encircled Angel’s muzzle and were so deep that her teeth were exposed on the side,” said Jonnie England, executive director of Operation Kindness.   “The wire must have allowed her to eat, but each time she moved her jaw, it cut even deeper into her skin.” 

Reconstructive mouth surgery was done on Angel and she has since made a full recovery. She was adopted by the family that fostered her following her surgery and treatment.  

The $15,000 reward is for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for wrapping the wire around the dog’s muzzle.   The case is being investigated by Dallas Animal Services and the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office has been notified. 

Anyone with information should contact Dallas Animal Services at 214-671-0105 or Operation Kindness at 972-418-PAWS (7297), ext. 226.