DETROIT (WXYZ) — The surveillance video that was taken from a camera near an alley in the area of West McNichols Road and the Southfield Freeway is hard to watch.
An unidentified man is seen walking into frame with two puppies and one by one, he hurled them over a 9-foot-high barbed wire fence as if they were bags of garbage.
Jasmine Gress and her fiancé Mikey Wilson hadn't seen the horrific surveillance video when they rushed to the location that someone posted on Facebook about two puppies that had been abandoned in the back of an animal clinic that was closed for the weekend.
Surveillance video shows the suspect throw the dogs over the fence. This video may be disturbing for some to watch:
Using a leash that he had fashioned into a harness, Wilson, a roofer, was able to hoist the puppies up and over the fence.
"I made sure it wouldn't hurt them," said Wilson, who was able to wrap some clothing around his arm to push the barbed wire out of the way.
As they were securing the puppies, someone came up to them to let them know that the cruel act had been caught on surveillance video.
Gress, mother to a 6-month-old who came with them for the rescue, has seen many cases of dogs abused and neglected, and this video still left her disgusted.
"He could have tied them to the fence because they had leashes on," she said. "Then the black one hit the barbed wire and he tried again."
Gress and Wilson's compassion frequently leads them to Detroit where they have noticed an increase in dogs that have been abandoned and injured. Many cases of cruelty are by the people who are supposed to care for them: their owners.
"A lot of times, we could go 10 blocks and find 15 dogs, starving dogs in backyard," Wilson said. "Owned dogs on heavy chains, starving."
Thankfully, they were able to turn to Saving Destiny animal rescue to help the puppies they recovered Sunday. They've now been named Velma and Daphne after characters from Scooby Doo.
VIDEO: See the dogs play outside after they were rescued
"They had previous scars, so we don't know what life was like before being thrown over the fence, but they're safe now," Gress told 7 News.
She and Wilson add that the puppies were so happy feeling a warm touch.
"They were just happy to have someone around them, honestly," Wilson said. "It was sad because they're good dogs. They weren't aggressive — just good dogs that didn't deserve that."
Saving Destiny founder Sabrina Stinson said the puppies, that a veterinarian believes to be about 6 months old, are doing well in their care.
"If it was an adult dog that he had done that to, it would not have been the same outcomes," Stinson said with the puppies relaxing beside her on a sofa. "We are extremely impressed that there is nothing more severe than just a few scrapes and bruises."
Stinson is urging anyone who has information on the man who dumped the dogs or knows where they came from to contact them, so they can help launch a police investigation.
Anyone with information can email savingdestinyanimalrescue@gmail.com.
"If the person who hurled the dogs over the fence isn't bothered or thinks no one else is troubled by it, it will continue to happen," Stinson said. "It only gets worse if allowed to keep going.
7 News Detroit contacted Detroit police and we're told they'll be looking into it and they encourage anyone who witnesses similar acts to file a police report.
"Turn them in," Gress said. "Be their voice because the dogs can't speak up for themselves."
