ATLANTA — A Veteran’s service dog named Bruno, who had been missing in Atlanta since Sunday, has been found dead off I-285.
In the heartbreaking update on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Top Dogg K9 Foundation said several people saw a dog matching Bruno’s description, a one-and-a-half-year-old standard poodle, on the side of the interstate.
“Thanks to the community, they were able to locate Bruno, but unfortunately appears to have been hit by a couple of cars along the interstate near the neighborhood,” Top Dogg K9 Foundation said in a statement.
Top Dogg K9 Foundation said they had informed Bruno’s owner, Kerrie Porter, of the devastating news.
11Alive previously spoke with Porter, who served for 10 years in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. She described Bruno as an essential part of her support system as a mother and wife.
“He helps me function daily, and I need his support,” she previously said.
The Top Dogg K9 Foundation, founded by Blake and Sheila Rashad in 2011, aims to support veterans through trained service dogs. Blake, a U.S. Army veteran and K-9 dog trainer, started the organization after experiencing the positive impact of having a trained dog during his own struggles with anxiety and depression.