09-05-2025
Dog dies after being left in dumpster by Rusty's Pizza Parlor
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — The Kern County Animal Shelter says Rose died from blunt force trauma injuries most likely from being run over by a car.
Video shows someone wrapping the injured dog in blankets before tossing her in a dumpster behind a locked gate surrounded by razor wire, and jump proof spikes.
It happened at 2 a.m., Monday behind Rusty's Pizza Parlor on Niles Street.
A worker with Rusty's Pizza Parlor says a homeless man brought their attention to the dog crying in the dumpster and they called animal control.
Kern County Animal Services found the dog in the dumpster at 10:41 a.m. on Tuesday, more than eight hours after she was tossed in the trash. The worker thought Rose was dead, until Rose picked her head up and whimpered.
Veterinary surgeon Nicole Eller is disgusted by the video.
Eller said, 'I've never lived anywhere like this before. It breaks my heart on a daily basis.'
Eller said it's a clear case of animal cruelty.
'Picking a dog up, and putting it in a dumpster when it's not dead, I mean, there's nothing right about that,' said Eller. 'There's nothing right here, (as she points to her heart). That's against the law.'
KCAS Director Nick Cullen stated in an email to 17 News, 'Rose was deceased upon our arrival, and she appeared to be an American Pit Bull Terrier mix. Significant blunt force trauma, the type of trauma we typically see as a result of an animal being hit by a moving vehicle, was likely what led to her death. Though immediate veterinary care may have saved her if it had been provided promptly.'
Cullen said it is not known how Rose' injuries were received.
'The only way to really tell for sure would be to do a full necropsy of the animal which means an autopsy in animal terms,' said Eller.
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KCAS states, if you find an injured animal in need of immediate care call animal control because officers are on call 24/7.
'I have never lived in a place like Kern County where you see the number of abandoned animals, injured animals, dumped animals, dumped puppies, dumped kittens. People need to step up, and take responsibility for their animals, and realize that they have emotions, they suffer pain…they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect,' said Eller.
The worker at Rusty's Pizza Parlor who found Rose said her eyes were popped out of her skull from the impact.
Cullen said she had no collar, no microchip, and KCAS named her Rose.
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