TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A Tampa animal rescue group worker and a college student came to blows over a dog, and now the internet is weighing in. Now, the foster dog is caught in the middle of this heated fight.
It was supposed to be a routine rescue handoff, but both sides showed the moment it turned into a physical fight. Now, both said they just wanted what was best for the dog.
Yelling, shoving and a disabled dog caught in the middle of a tense confrontation have now gone viral. Mike, a chihuahua mix, was recently rescued by Mercy Full Animals Project in Tampa. “He had a missing eye— and he had a broken leg, a broken limb that was just hanging in there,” Heydi Acuna said.
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A University of Tampa student came to foster Mike and, ultimately, adopt him. “Yes, she voluntarily came here and that’s how we found out that she was a good fit to take care of the animal. But we came to find out that that was not the case,” Acuna said. The student, Karolyn Rodriguez, said she cared for Mike, whom she nicknamed Rex, for a month. “I felt so bad for him, and I wanted to show him that not all humans are bad and that the experience he had is not right,” Rodriguez said. But confusion over adoption fees escalated the situation.
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“I had questioned it because I had obviously heard 400, now 500 [dollars]. My concern was, why did the price increase, and where is it going?” Rodriguez said. “She didn’t see the bigger picture that we are asking for an adoption fee in order to continue rescuing animals,” Acuna said. But the argument didn’t just go viral for the fight. A video surfaced, showing Rodriguez dancing with the injured dog at a concert. “I take accountability for that situation, and I know that that would never happen again and I would never do that again,” Rodriguez said.
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The rescue center said the incident has threatened their reputation, and the student is now worried for her safety…