Whimpering and cries alerted a janitor to the presence of a four-month-old puppy in the indoor dumpster of a luxury North York condominium yesterday.
The janitor heard the pup as he was putting garbage into a bin inside the building at 23 Lorraine Dr., in the Yonge Street and Finch Avenue West area, around 7:40 a.m. yesterday.
He found the frightened, but uninjured, pup inside a box wrapped in a plastic bag. The janitor gave the dog some water and called police.
Someone, presumably the owner of the black and white Lhasa Apso, had tied a plastic bag around the box containing the pup and tossed the inconspicuous package into the trash.
“We have no idea why he was left there, what happened, or who owns the dog,” said Toronto police Sgt. Carolyn Vandenberg. “He wasn’t in that bad of a condition. He was okay.”
Police turned the pup — dubbed “Charlie” by animal welfare workers yesterday — over to the Toronto Animal Services shelter at 1300 Sheppard Ave. W., where he will be examined by a vet and vaccinated.
The puppy will be ready for a permanent home in about a week, but one shouldn’t be hard to find, said Fiona Venedam, supervisor of Toronto animal services’ north region. By yesterday afternoon, the shelter had received nearly 60 inquiries about Charlie.
“He’s a very sweet little guy. I guarantee he’s going to get a lot of loving by our staff.”
He was likely not inside the box for long. “He doesn’t appear to be injured,” Venedam said. “(But) he could have died. He’s doing good. He’s wagging his tail,” she added.
The person who tossed him into the dumpster could face animal cruelty charges. But police have no suspects.
