JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Military veteran Scott Baker’s nightmare scenario went from bad to worse on Saturday when his service dog, Mal’i, was hit by a truck in East Arlington.
He said the driver who hit Mal’i at around 7:30 a.m. outside the Lux Apartments near Kernan and Atlantic boulevards left the scene, but even worse -- so did Mal’i.
The frightened pup, who is likely injured, took off running, Baker said. He was able to keep up with her until he lost sight of her near the Cinemark theater on Atlantic Boulevard.
He said they had just been letting Mal’i go outside briefly and she wasn’t on a leash when she was hit.
Baker is from Iowa, so Mal’i is not familiar with the area. And he says he won’t go home without her.
“I just need anybody that can, that has seen her, to call me,” Baker said. “I need her home. I need her back ASAP. I need to get her to the vet and checked out.”
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Baker, who came to Jacksonville to help move his son, who is in the Navy, into an apartment, said he desperately wants to find Mal’i. The two share a special bond.
“When I’m having an episode, and she wakes me up to let me know that she’s there, and right now I can’t sleep,” Baker said. “She’s not a service dog for anyone else but me. She knows what I need when I need it and why. And that’s why I need her back because I can’t live without her.”
The brown and tan American Staffordshire Terrier is wearing a black collar with Baker’s military dog tags on it. She is microchipped but will likely be skittish because of her injury.
Baker asks that if you spot her, you call him right away and don’t try to approach her. His number is 805-512-1860. (Please, only call if you have information about Mal’i.)
“We’re driving through the parking lots. We are driving through the businesses. We don’t have, not knowing exactly a certain area to focus on right now because we don’t have any sightings of her,” Baker said. “Please, if you have her, just let me know. I need her back.”
Baker has filed a report with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and investigators ask anyone with information about the truck that hit Mal’i to call 904-630-0500.