HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – A young pit bull is recovering after he was allegedly dragged by a rope that was tied to the back of a pickup truck bumper, witnesses told News Channel 8. 

It happened at the intersection of Northcliffe Boulevard and Franconia Avenue in Spring Hill on Friday morning.

Jan Harwood, the owner of Nature Coast Animal Wellness and Surgery Center in Weeki Wachee, said she watched as the dog was dragged by a truck that was going 30 to 40 miles per hour, and hurled onto the road. 

Harwood and another man in a van pulled over as the driver of the truck drove away.

She said the pit bull, which she named “Ollie,” had severe road rash all over his body. The pads of his feet were worn off. 

Harwood said the van owner brought the injured dog to her clinic, which is just up the highway and a veterinarian performed X-rays and ultrasounds. The vet said Ollie had no broken bones or internal injuries, which is amazing, considering the traumatic incident he had just been through. 

“He was beating the ground with such velocity and such a high rate of speed, so he was being pulled along and then when the driver of the truck decided to make a turn, luckily when he made that turn, the dog’s head slipped out of the collar. It was attached to the rope,” Harwood said. 

The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office is searching for an older, beat up, blue pickup truck with furniture in the back. 

In the meantime, “Ollie” is being fostered at a vet tech’s house and might be available for adoption once he is healed.