Mokena Family Searching For Their Lost Dog Seen Hit By Car

MOKENA, IL — A Mokena couple and their family are frantically searching for their beloved dog, who is believed to have been hit by a car shortly after he ran from their home.

Ken and Connie Pedersen's 4-year-old blue-nosed pitbull Moose was not far from their home Monday evening when two girls believe they saw him being struck by a car, the couple's daughter-in-law told Patch. The car did not stop after hitting the dog, the girls said.

The girls went back for the dog, said the daughter-in-law Kelsee Grey Pedersen, but Moose bolted before he could be grabbed.

Pedersen drove to Mokena from Manteno to help her family search.

"He’s a sweetheart, he’s the biggest baby you could ever imagine," Pedersen said of Moose. "All the kids hang all over him."

Pedersen said she's unsure how he will act if he has been injured and is in pain. The family has been scouring the neighborhood in hopes of finding him.

"Everybody’s been out driving, no one can find him anywhere," Pedersen said.

Moose was last seen near Willow Lane and Newport Drive in Mokena, possibly heading toward Brookside Glen in Tinley Park, Pedersen said. He has gray fur and a gray nose, with light eyes. He has a small white blaze between his eyes and down his nose.

Moose is wearing a red collar, but the tag was recently chewed off by another family dog. He is a rescue dog and is microchipped, but the chip is registered to his previous owners, who relinquished the dog.

Pedersen has shared the information on social media in hopes of getting Moose home. Anyone who spots him is encouraged to call (708)770-1950.