Good Samaritans spend hours searching for pets involved in wreck

MADISON COUNTY, Tenn — Along with a family of five injured after a bad wreck on Interstate 40, the Tennessee Highway patrol said there were also five pets inside during the accident.

With an already devastating start to the day, a few Good Samaritans wanted to help the injured victims reunite with their missing pets. It all started as one woman happened to spot a dog on the side of the interstate. One person turned into a small rescue group, hoping to provide the family involved in the wreck some relief.

Three dogs and two cats are far away from their family, after a SUV rollover Wednesday morning.

“I thought I would just drive around and look for the dog because I would want somebody to do that for me if I had been in a car accident to look for my pet,” Rev. Gayle McCarty, who helped look for the pets said.

Reverend McCarty learned the news of the accident and quickly called a few others for back-up to assist in the search.

“I wasn’t sure exactly where the accident happened so I called Cathy Abrahams who’s involved in rescue and as she’s describing where the accident happened there comes Princess walking up the side of the medium,” Rev. McCarty said.

A dog trainer assisting in the search, Rachel Carlson said. “We want people to try to be staying away from her if anything chasing her back away from the interstate.”

Rev. McCarty said, “She has been getting in and out of traffic crossing into the median having near death experiences,”

At one point Princess started heading towards the group, but still no luck catching her.

“The more we try to chase after this dog, the more scared she’s going to get,” Carlson said. “She’s just going to keep running and we may inevitably chase her in front of a car and so we do not want to do that.”

The Good Samaritans took a short break from the search, gathering in a circle for prayer as they hoped for Princess and her siblings get to safety.

“We’re asking people to continue to pray for this family as they recover and pray for recovery of these pets, especially princess because this is such a busy expressway,” Rev. McCarty said.

Although the group was unable to capture princess, they set a live trap with food near the area they were searching. They also covered it with a blanket belonging to the family.

Out of the five pets, four are still missing. One of the cats was rescued earlier on Wednesday and remains in the care of the Jackson-Madison County Humane Society.

Look out for a Hound Dog with a white chest, white paws and pink collar, name is Princess.

Two Chihuahuas, one black with pink collar, name Zoey. Second Black with purple collar, uncertain on name.

If you see one of the pets police say report it to the Madison County Fire Department. They also say it’s best to not go after the animals near the interstate.