A dog that was left unattended on a balcony of a Miami apartment building died after falling more than 30 floors on Sunday.
A video showed the dog wandering on the balcony before it fell to its death, according to WPLG Local 10.
DOG OWNER SOUGHT: Miami-Dade Animal Services is asking the public to help find a man whose dog died after it fell more than 30 floors from the balcony of an apartment building last weekend. https://t.co/GEfnQupsAI
— WPLG Local 10 News (@WPLGLocal10) November 15, 2023
The dog’s body was reportedly found on a sidewalk near the residential building at around 10 a.m.. The outlet was able to get a picture of the body in a garbage bag.
Miami-Dade Animal Services is now looking for the dog’s owner, who was allegedly evicted from his apartment on Tuesday for multiple violations, including overdue rent and a fine for the dog’s barking. The eviction process started several weeks ago, the outlet noted.
“I think it was an accident,” a neighbor who knows the dog’s owner told WPLG. “That’s my opinion.”
The neighbor said that the owner seemed “very distraught” after the dog’s death, noting that “I believe it was a rescue animal and seemed like he was pretty crushed by everything that happened.”
Miami-Dade Animal Services official Sam Gafcovich told the outlet that failing to provide adequate shelter to pets is a punishable offense. (RELATED: Hiker’s Body Found With Dog Still By His Side Nearly 3 Months After Disappearance)
“Leaving dogs on balconies is not the right way to go,” Gafcovich added. “Most people feel their dogs are their babies and they raise them like that. So you wouldn’t leave your infant on the balcony unattended. Do the same for your animals.”