Nobody can believe this story, but there is Kia, wagging her tail, telling everyone it has to be true.
Kia survived a month in a truck, alone, surviving on scraps of McDonald’s fast food and no water. It defies sense, but until someone comes around with another explanation, this will have to do: Kia is a miracle dog.
According to the Kansas City Star, a Chevy Suburban was towed to a city tow lot on April 8. The vehicle was locked. Employees don’t break into locked cars, according to Danny Rotert, spokesman for Kansas City municipal government. They inventory the vehicle and the interior by taking pictures.
On May 6, a tow lot employee was going around, marking cars for auction — marking the Chevy for auction.
A dog jumped on the dashboard. Kia.
Tow employees called the police — by law, because the truck was locked — who arrived and released the dog.
“Without an appreciable amount of water, it’s pretty miraculous for a puppy to survive [that long] in a car,” said veterinarian Billie Deam, who owns and operates the Animal Clinic of Boardwalk Square. “It’s really stretching the outer limits of what’s possible.”
The Chevy’s owner had even come to look at it May 1, but he didn’t have keys. He never mentioned a dog, and it isn’t known who was driving the vehicle when it was towed. The owner still owes $1,100 to retrieve the Suburban.
Kia was taken to the city’s animal shelter, which is operated by Kansas City Pet Project. She was skinny and in need of water — she looked only eight weeks old instead of 10 — but she was very alive.
“We had her vet check her out yesterday. She is very emaciated and dehydrated,” said Teresa Johnson, CEO of the Kansas City Pet Project. “There was trash in the car, some McDonald’s trash, which looks like she’d been eating.
“She’s just a little miracle dog. It’s amazing.”
The Kansas City Star says Kansas City Pet Project staff named the dog Kia because they couldn’t think of any names associated with a Chevy (like, maybe, Chevy).
Once Kia is nursed back to health and trained, she will be available for adoption. As for how the dog survived, one clue is the condition of the Chevy.
“The animal control officer said the car was just disgusting,” Tori Fugate, spokeswoman for the Kansas City Pet Project, told KCTV.
It was filled with clothes, clutter, and trash. In addition to fast-food remains, authorities also believe Kia ate cigars to survive.
Now, she’s doing well in her foster family. According to the Pet Project’s Facebook, “We talked to Kia’s foster parents, and she is doing great and seems to have suffered no ill effects from her ordeal. She is sweet and playful and getting spoiled this very minute!”
