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Puppy Killed After Dogs Stuffed Into Sack, Tossed Out Of Moving Vehicle Near Watsonville

WATSONVILLE (CBS SF) -- Investigators in Santa Cruz County are asking the public's help to find who stuffed two dogs – a mother and her puppy – into a sandbag and tossed them from a moving vehicle, killing the puppy.

The Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter said its officers responded to a report of an abandoned dog on Minto Road north of Watsonville Friday afternoon and found a six-year-old Miniature Pinscher next to the body of a four-to-six week old puppy.

The mother dog appeared frightened and would not leave the body of her puppy, according to animal shelter Officer Todd Stosuy.

WARNING: The photo that follows may be disturbing to some.

After the mother dog was placed in a animal control vehicle, she began to cry and claw at the door until the body of the puppy was put in the crate with her, according to Stosuy.

Investigators determined the mother dog managed to chew out of the sandbag after being tossed to the side of the road.

The shelter said a necropsy showed the puppy died of head trauma. According to the report,"in an attempt to revive the puppy, the mother accidentally bit the puppy's tongue off."

"What makes this case so disturbing is that a person would decide that putting dogs in sand bags and throwing them out of a window like garbage was even an option," Stosuy said in a statement. "There are always alternative options if you have an animal you can no longer keep, including surrendering them at no cost to Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter."

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A Miniature Pinscher looks over the body of her puppy after both were stuffed into a sandbag and tossed onto the side of a rural road near Watsonville, February 20, 2015. (Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter)

Stosuy said the shelter accepts all domestic animals at its two locations in Santa Cruz and in Watsonville. Investigators urged anyone with information about the dogs to contact the animal shelter at (831) 454-7303.

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