Vallejo man arrested for tossing puppy in dumpster

A Vallejo man was arrested last week after the Solano County Sheriff's Office recovered a dog that thrown in a dumpster and left for dead.

Officials with the sheriff's office received a call last Thursday from a gas station employee who said a customer found a young French Bulldog in a garbage dumpster near the business. The dog was alive, but unresponsive, the sheriff's office said.

Animal control personnel responded to the scene and took custody of the dog. Officials took it to a local veterinarian, where it was nursed back to health.

Investigators reviewed surveillance footage from the gas station and ultimately determined 28-year-old Jerald Stevenson was responsible for dumping the dog in the trash receptacle. Sheriff's personnel visited Stevenson at his home in Vallejo, where he reportedly admitted throwing the dog away.

"[Stevenson] said the puppy had recently gotten diarrhea and was 'just dying,'" a sheriff's office spokesperson said. "They admitted to never attempting to seek veterinary care for the puppy."

Stevenson was found to be on active probation. He was arrested and taken to the Solano County Jail on a probation violation charge and on suspicion of felony animal cruelty.

The sheriff's office still has custody of the dog. Officials say they are not taking public inquiries about adopting the puppy at the moment.