WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — A Williamsburg family is heartbroken and seeking answers after their emotional support dog was struck by a hit-and-run driver. Now, they are turning to the community for support.
Kisses and hugs are some of the ways Derek and Kristina Thacker show affection to their dog Moose. But they hold him much tighter now.
It all happened on Christmas Eve along Carter's Neck Road in Williamsburg. The Thackers first noticed blood on the ground, then followed that trail to the back deck where they found Moose.
"We found him on the back porch and his whole face was completely dripping with blood. There was this huge hole in his neck," Kristina Thacker said.
The Thackers weren't at home at the time of the incident. After a visit to the vet, they learned Moose's injuries were most likely from a hit-and-run.
"There are fractures on the whole right side of his face, and then his eye and the left side of his face," the Thackers told News 3. "I don't understand how anyone would've done this. I still don't understand how anybody wouldn't have stopped."
But Kristina and Derek Thacker aren't the only ones affected by this.
"We brought Moose and his sister from Arizona purposely for both our kids, they both are autistic," Kristina Thacker said. "We definitely got them to grow, and it's helped our littlest one the most. He asked about Moo dog every day he was in the hospital, and I did not know how to tell him."
Now raising money for the dog's surgery, the family created a GoFundMe. To their surprise, they've received $1,600 so far already.
The Thackers say they're hoping to have 70 percent of the money raised for Moose's surgery by the beginning of January.
"It's nice to see people actually care. I know there's a lot of stuff going on here in the world, but this is our world right here. He's our buddy," the Thackers said.
If you would like to donate to the Thacker family, you can find their GoFundMe here.
