MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – A dog formerly housed at Ridglan Farms, who was adopted by a person in Florida, has died after officials believe he was attacked by an alligator.
Big Dog Ranch Rescue, located in Loxahatchee, Florida, explained in a Facebook post that it received a call at 6 p.m. Saturday that the dog, known as Omelette, had escaped through his new owner’s fence.
The rescue’s team started looking for the dog and posted on multiple platforms for people to be on the lookout.
Crews eventually found Omelette’s body in a nearby canal, where they determined an alligator attack took place.
“Omelette was more than just a rescue dog,” Big Dog Ranch Rescue said in its post. “He was one of ours. He was part of the Big Dog Ranch Rescue family, and he was loved by so many people.”
Big Dog Ranch Rescue noted dogs who formerly lived in a laboratory facility pose a significant risk of escape, so owners are educated on the challenges the dogs could face and are given a GPS tracking collar to help locate the dogs if they escape.
The rescue explained Omelette’s adopter was instructed on how to install the tracking collar, but he never activated it before Omelette got away.
Hundreds of beagles were released from Ridglan Farms recently after an agreement between the Town of Blue Mounds facility and national rescue groups. The dogs were distributed to rescues, foster homes and adopters across the country.
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