Dog survives I-95, rescuers search for owner

NORTH MIAMI-DADE, Fla. (WSVN) -- A dog is on the road to recovery after being badly injured on the interstate.

Imagine driving southbound on Interstate 95, near the 135th Street exit, when a dog darts across the road and gets hit by a car. It happened to Carrie Zack over the weekend. What she did next likely saved that dog's life.

According to the National Traffic Safety Administration, I-95 in South Florida is the most dangerous stretch of road in the country, and that is just for humans. For a dog, it can be a death sentence, and it almost was for Charlie, but this lucky lab had a guardian angel. "I was driving in the express lane," said Zack, "the Sunpass lane, and I saw this dog running, and I saw this car. I don't even remember what kind of dog it was, and I saw the car hit him, and he got tossed to the side."

It was Sunday, the end of a long day for Zack, but she couldn't just drive by. This dog lover said she had to help the injured animal, shielding him from the constant flow of traffic just feet away. "He was shaking like crazy, so I figured I'd better try to get him in the car, and I opened the door of my car, and I didn't want to get out because there was so many cars. He was struggling, and I just kept calling and telling him it was OK, and he got into my car, and he immediately laid down on the seat."

Bleeding and bruised, Zack rushed the dog to the Hollywood Animal Hospital where she had to make another tough choice. "Look, you can't let this dog die. I don't have thousands of dollars to pay for this, but I want to pay for something. Can you just help me?"

She agreed to put up her own money to pay for treatment, but Zack had to draw a line when it came to picking a name for the injured pooch. "They were calling him good luck chuck, and I didn't want to call him Chuck, so I said I wanted to call him Charlie."

The new name may not rhyme anymore, but luck is still the best way to describe this dog's remarkable recovery. In just three days, Charlie is back on his feet, tongue wagging and looking for a little love. "He's like a new dog," Zack said. "He's happy. He's wagging his tail, and you wouldn't even have known anything had happened to him."

Since the injury, the Lab Rescue of Florida has stepped in. They helped pay for medical expenses and found the dog a temporary home. Right now, Zack and rescue volunteers are trying to find Charlie's original owners.

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