nws dog

Charlotte, a 6-month-old Maltese Shih Tzu, is in critical condition at South Shore Animal Hospital after a group of people found the dog tied up in a shopping bag on South Railroad Avenue in Bay Terrace Friday night. (Photo courtesy of witness)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A puppy is clinging to life after a group of Good Samaritans found the pooch badly injured inside a plastic shopping bag near the Staten Island Railway in Bay Terrace Friday night.

The black shopping bag that a group of people found a puppy in on Friday night near South Railroad Avenue in Bay Terrace. (Photo courtesy of witness)





The 6-month-old Maltese Shih Tzu is currently in critical condition and being cared for at South Shore Animal Hospital in New Dorp.



Veterinarian, Dr. Michali Berenstein, said the pup had fractured its skull and right thigh bone. Doctors are in the process of transferring the dog, which they named Charlotte, to an off-site neurologist to better determine its condition.



"She's not out of the woods by any means," Dr. Berenstein said. "We're just giving her as best a chance as we can, but we're pretty worried about her."



Police said they received a report of the animal abuse and are investigating, according to an NYPD spokeswoman.



The person who originally found the dog wished to remain anonymous, but told the Advance she heard it crying from across the street as she walked home from work along South Railroad Avenue around 9 p.m. Friday.



She, her boyfriend and a few others traced the muffled sobs to a black shopping bag in the weeds near the railroad fence at Hopkins Avenue. They looked inside the bag and found the dog, motionless, wearing a pink ribbon on its head.



"I was horrified," the woman said.



Adding, "We thought it was dead because it stopped moving when we opened up the bag, then it started moving again."



The group placed the puppy in a basket and towel and brought the dog to the animal hospital on New Dorp Lane.



Dr. Berenstein stressed that her office is not currently accepting donations as they try to better determine her prognosis over the next 24-hours.



Many have taken to social media in an attempt to track down any information about the injured dog, including the Facebook group, Lost and Found Pets Staten Island.





Anyone with information on this puppy is asked to contact police or the vet's office at 718-980-2600.

