UPDATE – Friday – 4/12/2013 11:15 a.m. ET
WASHINGTON – The former owner of a Shih Tzu named “Biscuit” has been located, however the dog will remain with its foster family for now and eventually go up for adoption, according to a Fairfax County Animal Shelter news release.
Biscuit’s owner lived in close proximity to where the dog had been living on the streets, the release says. Biscuit’s former owner says he fled the day after he was purchased. She posted flyers and searched for a few months but has since purchased another dog.
So far, the Animal Shelter has received dozens of calls from people interested in adopting Biscuit.
EARLIER – Monday – 4/8/2013 09:36am ET
WASHINGTON — After living on his own for two years and continuing to elude authorities, a homeless Shih Tzu — known as “Biscuit” in his Franconia community — was rescued on Saturday morning.
A Fairfax County animal control officer has been on the trail of the tiny dog for months, states a news release.
“He would always find an escape route,” Officer Enna Lugo says. “When we tried to trap him, he would lie next to the traps but he would never go inside.”
Biscuit’s origins are unknown. Some residents say his owner died and he was left to fend for himself. Others say his owner moved and left him behind.
Regardless, Biscuit had been spotted in the community for more than two years, foraging for food and moving from one hiding place to another, according to the news release.
“Whenever I came to catch Biscuit, neighborhood residents would tell me the last place they had seen him,” Lugo says. “Everyone tried to help him get off the streets.”
On Saturday, Lugo, animal control staff and volunteers teamed up for the mission to get Biscuit. When they arrived at his usual spot under a residential patio at Manchester Boulevard and Beulah Road around 8 a.m., he was not there.
But he was soon spotted nearby, “huddled in a nest of leaves where he had made a bed,” the release says.
The team used a net to catch the pup and immediately took him to a veterinarian. The animal doctor removed more than 40 ticks off Biscuit and treated him for a skin infection, but he was otherwise healthy. He was estimated to be about 3 or 4 years old.
“Most surprisingly, Biscuit allowed Officer Lugo and the veterinary staff to hold and pet him,” the release states. “He seemed to know that his struggle was over and that he was in caring hands.”
Lugo offered to foster Biscuit to help him acclimate to living in a house with people. He will be available for adoption after readjusting.
“I told the residents that even if it took me a year, I would catch Biscuit and get him a loving home,” Lugo said.
