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Beaver Co. Humane Society Caring For Dog Shot In Jaw

CENTER TOWNSHIP (KDKA) – A veterinarian made a shocking discovery while operating on a stray dog brought to the Beaver County Humane Society.

The dog had been running loose in Aliquippa since January. It was finally trapped by Animal Finders of Beaver County on Feb. 22.

During an initial evaluation, humane society officials noticed a lump on the dog's jaw.

"When he was first presented to us, we found a large mass on his chin and it was located on the right side of the lower chin right here and it was firm and large," said Dr. Jasmin Wu, the vet at the Beaver County Humane Society.

While undergoing surgery, Dr. Wu found the lump was actually a bullet from a 9 mm handgun.

"Instead of an abscess, I found a shiny object and it was a bullet," she said. "We think it has been there a few months because when he came in, [there] was no entry wound and all of the hair was intact. If it broke the skin, it was healed up nicely, so it's been at least a few months."

The workers at the shelter have named the dog Eli and he is believed to be about 2-years-old.

eli-dog
(Photo Credit: KDKA)

After alerting Aliquippa Police, the humane society is now working to rehab Eli.

"He is slowly regaining his faith in human beings as he had become quite shut down with his recent experiences.  We are searching for an experienced, PATIENT, volunteer foster home that can help us work with him and continue to bring him out of his shell.  We want to see this dog successfully adopted into a loving, permanent home, but we know it will take some time to get him over his fear of people and new situations," BCHS Executive Director Susan Salyards said.

If you would like to donate to help cover Eli's medical costs, you can do so by clicking here.

If you are interested in the foster home program, click here.

Aliquippa Police are investigating the shooting. So far, they say they have no leads and no suspects.

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