PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla.- The discovery of a dead dog at the corner of Norwood Street and Blossom Avenue in Port Charlotte has neighbors shaken.

It's the staging of the animal that has both homeowners and animal control baffled.

The animal was found last Friday in the middle of the road, wearing a T-shirt and collar, and lying on a dog bed.

Homeowner Jennifer Baiardi was working in her yard at the time when it caught her eye.

"There was a red towel laying on top of it.  I turned around.  I lifted up the towel, and I saw a dead chihuahua," Baiardi said.

"In my 15 years of service I can't recall any time in recent memory where we've found a dog under these circumstances," Lieutenant Brian Jones of Charlotte County Animal Control said.

Officers say the puppy was between 5-6 months old.  It had no broken bones or wounds.

"A deceased animal found under those circumstances, is certainly suspect and it left us with a lot more questions than answers," Lieutenant Jones said.

Without evidence of a crime, a necropsy can't be performed, so officers are looking to talk to more witnesses or the dog's owner.

The dog, which was not microchipped, was wearing a collar with a tag, but the numbers weren't registered, so they're having difficulty tracking down who the dog belongs to.

If you have any information, call Charlotte County Animal Control at (941) 833-5690.