A dog is now in the care of a Midlands animal rescue after he was abandoned with a sign Tuesday afternoon saying his owner went to jail.
Blanca Anahi Cushman says her cousin found Scooter near the Little Caesar's in West Columbia.
"Scooter was sitting there with his food all in the grass," said Maria Jaramillo, Cushman's cousin.
He was left on a leash tied to a nearby tree with two bowls, a pile of food on the ground and a duffle bag. Next to Scooter was a piece of flooring tile with his hastily written back story scribbled on it.
RELATED: See other photos from Scooter following his rescue.
The sign said, "Free pup. [My] Name is Scooter. [My] Owner went to jail today."
"He was really scared," Jaramillo said. "He was actually shaking."
Cushman's Facebook post describes how Scooter was found:
My cousin just found this dog tied to a tree at the back of Muv Fitness West Columbia and we don't know where to go from here...clearly the owner is a piece of garbage and left the dog here. It's getting dark and I don't want to leave him does anyone have any ideas please, i can't keep the dog for the long term.
