At the scene Friday afternoon, dog owner Hunter Sears, 16, talked about Blade.
"He's been in there since Tuesday night at 7:30. He's a year and 7 months old - a black and tan male," Sears said.
According to a statement from PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) issued Friday afternoon the group wanted the Lumpkin County Sheriff's Office, the county road department and local animal shelter officials to rescue Blade, a coondog that has been trapped in the 200-foot culvert since Jan. 1.
"He was chasing a coon and then he followed the coon up in that culvert pipe," Sears said. "Then we shined the other side, but it's filled up with dirt. We seen the coon, but it couldn't get up in there so it turned around. Then we heard the dog and the coon fight."
Blade was wearing a tracking collar, with a signal still present late Friday afternoon, though its located fluctuated.
Sears is holding out hope, but said he is truly concerned for his dog.
"Then I've just heard wimpers and stuff the past couple days after that," Sears said.
"Every minute that Blade spends trapped in the pipe is terrifying - and he may not have much time left," said PETA Senior Vice President of Cruelty Investigations Daphna Nachminovitch. "PETA is standing by and will do anything in our power to help Lumpkin County officials safely return Blade to his family."
Two volunteers from PETA arrived at the scene at around 3 p.m. Friday.
Late Friday afternoon a camera was inserted by contractors into the culvert, but no dog was found.
Officials now believe the dog somehow escaped the pipe overnight and remains at large.
PETA is continuing to work with the family to find the dog, who remains lost.
A contractor carries a mobile videocamera to a culvert pipe located down the hill from Long Branch Road in Lumpkin County late Friday afternoon. (Photo/Rob Moore)
Dog owner Hunter Sears, right, watches as a contractor places a videocamera in a culvert pipe running underneath Long Branch Road in Lumpkin County late Friday afternoon. (Photo/Rob Moore)
A contractor views the inside of the 24-inch culvert pipe with the video feed from a robotic camera. (Photo/Rob Moore)
A coondog was thought to be trapped in a 24-inch-diameter culvert pipe that runs underneath Long Branch Road approximately where the junction sign is located. (Photo/Rob Moore)
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