Burned Dog Needs Help

Waterbury Police are investigating a disturbing case of animal abuse after finding a dog severely burned in a parking lot.

Animal control officers found Precious, a 1-year-old pit bull mix, around 9 p.m. on Monday after receiving a call saying the dog was there and needed treatment.

The dog was laying underneath a bush in a little bit of snow in an empty lot on Hopkins Street.

"When we picked it up, we found the entire underside of the dog -- it looked like it may have been burned. Maybe a chemical burn," Sgt. Renee Harvey, of the Waterbury Police Department, said.

Officials think the dog suffered a severe case of mange and someone tried to treat it, but it made the situation worse. 

"Possibly somebody tried to treat it and it was kind of a treatment gone wrong,” Harvey said.

Precious didn't have any tags on.

“We checked it for a microchip and there's nothing there and unfortunately we get a lot of these cases,” Harvey said. “It's really difficult to try to track down an owner or somebody responsible."

Veterinarians are confident Precious will make a full recovery, but treatments take a lot of time and require a lot of money.

If you're interested in helping out, you can make a donation to the Waterbury Municipal Dog Pound at 200 Municipal Road, Waterbury, CT 06708, Attention: Sgt Harvey for Precious.

Note that your donation is for Precious.