Homeless Man Saves Dog Soaked in Oil

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The Humane Society of Memphis and Shelby County is still rehabbing a German Shepherd mix from more than a week ago, when she was found with her head barely above a pool of oil. The Humane Society says this is one of the strangest animal abuse cases it has seen.

When emergency vets first saw Ellie May, they couldn't see the color of her coat. The seven-year-old German Shepherd mix was covered head to toe in oil.

A homeless man, James Beavers, pulled her out of a clogged drain full of wood, trash, stagnant water, and thick oil at least four feet high.

"I got a rope, put it around her, got down, and pulled her out," Beavers said.

Then, he called his friend, Sheila Zacher for help.

"He told me he heard a car drive off. He found a dog and it was in the oil pit at the car wash," Zacher said.

Zacher picked-up Ellie May from the abandoned East Memphis car wash and drove her to the Humane Society.

"You could smell it from the car before you got close to the car, literally from across the parking lot. Stagnate water and oil mixed together just made a strong pungent odor," John Robinson of the Humane Society said.

He was the first employee to see Ellie May when Zacher brought her in May 13-th.

"She was definitely in some distress. Her temperature dropped dramatically. By the time we got her here to the emergency vet, her temperature was down to 92--which is really not good for a dog," Robinson said.

More than a week later, Ellie May still has signs of the oil in her coat. She has been bathed six times with dawn. And, she'll get about three more before it’s all out.

These rescuers can smile at Ellie May's speedy recovery. But none of them can understand how a person could throw her away and leave her to suffer. They just want her to enjoy the rest of her life.

"She should go to a home that's going to spoil the heck out of her," Zacher said.

The Humane Society offered Mr. Beavers some tokens of appreciation for rescuing Ellie May.