Dog Tossed from Moving Car; Recovering at Delco SPCA

UPDATE: An .

The is asking for the community’s help in finding the owner of a small dog that was tossed from a moving car in Chester on Wednesday.

The female puppy, identified by Delco SPCA officials as a Westie-Poodle mix not more than 4 months old, was still wearing a collar and leash when she was tossed from a car heading north on Highland Avenue in the City of Chester. The car was going at least 35 miles per hour, a witness told the SPCA.

A Good Samaritan, Mary Alice Pleninger, on her way to work at Harrah’s Chester as a security guard and EMT was trailing the car and saw the animal being thrown from what Pleninger described as a four-door gray Honda Civic or Hyundai sedan, according to the SPCA.

No license plate was recorded.

"I saw the head of the dog come out, then the body," Pleninger told the SPCA.

Thankfully, a car in the next lane swerved out of the way of the puppy and the dog ran over to a fence alongside the road. Pleninger immediately pulled her car over to the side and retrieved the dog, according to the SPCA.

The car that the dog was tossed from hit its breaks and then immediately sped up upon seeing Pleninger rescue the dog, according to the SPCA.

Pleninger, trained and certified in animal first aid, did an initial assessment of the dog to determine no bones were obviously broken. When she arrived at Harrah’s, she called former City of Chester Animal Control Officer Dave Schlott, who contacted the Delco SPCA Humane Investigator Bill Vernon.

Schlott, a consultant for the Delco SPCA, then picked up the dog and transported her to the Delco SPCA Adoption Center in Media where workers named the puppy, "Raggedy Ann.”

After her medical evaluation, the Delco SPCA’s Director of Shelter Medicine Dr. Kimberly Boudwin said Raggedy Ann did not suffer any severe wounds but has a scrape on her back right paw and slight bruising on her lower abdomen. She will continue to be closely evaluated, according to the SPCA.

"We need people to be these defenseless animals’ eyes and ears, like Mary Alice was for Raggedy Ann,” said Justina Calgiano, director of community relations at the Delaware County SPCA.

Raggedy Ann isn't the first animal that has arrived at the Delco SPCA after being abused or neglected. Dogs , , and most recently each were found in extremely poor condition. All three of the dogs recovered nicely at the Delco SPCA. They are just a few of the animals that arrive at the non-profit organization needing extreme care.

Anyone with information on who Raggedy Ann’s owner may be is urged to contact Delco SPCA Humane Investigator Bill Vernon at 610-566-1370 x214.

A photo and vet records will be required for proof of ownership. Anyone with knowledge of an animal being abused in Delaware County is also urged to report it to the Delco SPCA.

Raggedy Ann will be held at the Adoption Center with the hope of an owner coming forward. If no owner comes forward, she will be placed up for adoption at noon on Wednesday.

This press release was provided by the Delaware County SPCA.