Florida dog found tied to fence and abandoned before Milton is safe with rescue group

A dog — rescued in Tampa by the Florida Highway Patrol after being tied to a fence and left in the rain hours before Hurricane Milton made landfall — is now in foster care, with a new, fitting name.

“His name is Trooper, because of how much he’s been through and to honor those who saved him,” the Leon County Humane Society in Tallahassee said in a statement.

Trooper was discovered on the side of I-75 in Tampa, according to a video posted by Florida Highway Patrol on Wednesday morning. He was less than 100 miles from where Milton had made landfall.

In the video, which has since amassed over 11 million views, a third of the dog’s body appeared submerged in water. There were no signs of his owner returning or how long the dog had been outside.

“It’s OK, it’s OK,” an unidentified state trooper said as he approached the pooch. The dog growled and barked back, to which the state trooper replied “I don’t blame you.”

FHP Troopers rescued a dog left tied to a pole on I-75 near Bruce B Downs Blvd this morning. Do NOT do this to your pets please… pic.twitter.com/8cZJOfkJL2

— FHP Tampa (@FHPTampa) October 9, 2024

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis re-posted the video, adding that the state “will hold anyone who mistreats pets accountable.”

On Thursday, Leon County Humane Society announced that their dog coordinator got a call from the governor’s office about Trooper and picked him up. According to the rescue organization, Trooper was not microchipped.

“We can’t imagine the situation that ended with him tied to this pole and left him without any hope,” the humane society said. “It’s hard even to think about how scared he must have been as cars raced by, the water rose to his belly, and the storm clouds darkened.”

The organization described Trooper as “incredibly stressed and still decompressing” but “smiled” on a few occasions.

Since announcing that Trooper was in their care, the rescue group said they have received dozens of inquiries about adoption. But as for now, their main focus is to help the dog feel safe and comfortable in his new environment.

“We have absolutely no idea what his life looked like before he was abandoned,” the humane society said. “We want to be sure that we know exactly what he needs before even considering adoption, so he’ll be in foster care until we feel confident he’s ready for the next phase of life, and that his future will be kind to him.”

Milton made landfall around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday near Siesta Key as a Category 3 hurricane. Flooding wreaked havoc throughout western Florida while multiple tornadoes touched down in a retirement community on Florida’s east coast.

At least 11 people in Florida have died as a result of Milton. Over 2 million customers remain without power in the state, according to PowerOutage.us.