I’ve watched a lot of rescue bodycam clips. This one got me because of what the puppy did the second the cage opened.
He didn’t cower. He tried to play.
A Cardboard Box That Moved
On Aug. 23, Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper John Kronander was doing a routine rest area check in Medina County. He noticed a cardboard box with something shifting under it.
Underneath was a metal crate with a puppy locked inside. No food, no water, summer heat.
From Miles to Trooper
Kronander took him back to the Medina post, fed him, and drove him to the Medina County SPCA. Staff named him Miles and guessed he was three to four months old.
The bodycam video spread fast, and Wamiz covered the rescue moment as it went viral.
On Sept. 5, Deputy Matthew Denton of the Medina County Sheriff’s Office adopted him. Denton and Kronander are friends. One found him, the other took him home.
Denton renamed him Trooper.
Nobody Has Been Charged
Abandoning an animal is a crime in Ohio under Revised Code 959.01. A first offense is a second-degree misdemeanor.
Troopers are reviewing rest area security footage, but they’ve said there’s no guarantee they’ll identify anyone.
If you can’t keep a pet, call a shelter. Surrendering is legal, abandoning isn’t, and most shelters will at least talk through options with you.
Find an animal like this? Don’t stop on a highway shoulder. Call non-emergency police or your county dog warden with the exit or mile marker.
Have you ever come across an abandoned animal? What did you do? Tell me in the comments.
Why This Matters
Trooper got lucky, and luck shouldn’t be the system.
According to Best Friends Animal Society’s shelter data, about 500,000 dogs and cats are sitting in U.S. shelters on any given day. Most puppies get adopted fast, but 3.8% still wait more than 60 days.
The only reason this puppy moved in two weeks was a bodycam video that went viral. Most abandoned animals don’t come with footage.
Key Takeaways
- A trooper found a caged puppy at an Ohio rest stop on Aug. 23, 2026.
- A sheriff’s deputy adopted him on Sept. 5 and renamed him Trooper.
- Animal abandonment is a misdemeanor in Ohio, and the case is still open.
- Surrendering to a shelter is always the legal option.
One Found Him, the Other Took Him Home
A puppy left to die on a highway now sleeps in a deputy’s house with a name that means something.
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. Details are based on public reports and may change.
[…] cases don’t always end with accountability. When a puppy was found abandoned in a crate on an Ohio highway, investigators reviewed footage but couldn’t guarantee they’d identify anyone. Here, a […]