Reward Offered in Puppy Sexual Abuse Case in Northern Michigan

The Humane Society of the United States is offering a reward of up to $5,000 in a case of alleged sexual abuse toward a puppy in the Grayling, Michigan area.

The puppy's owner, Terri Lasby, tells 9 & 10 News that she let the puppy out on March 12. Jake, a 14-week-old Maltese Shih Tzu mix disappeared, but then returned to the yard several hours later, injured. The dog was covered in mud and debris, and when Terri and her husband John attempted to bathe Jake, he yelped with pain and refused to lift his tail.

A vet examined the dog, and determined that he had been a victim of a sexual assault.

"I can't imagine who would want to do something like that," says Terri Lasby. "It doesn't make any sense."

Lasby tells the TV station the assault has taken a lot from Jake.

"It was just like the fire had gone out of him," Terri says. "He's our family. I mean, we have children but our children are grown and out of the house so he's the last one left at home."

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Crawford County Sheriff's Department at (989) 348-6341.