A dog abandoned with another one in Jim Thorpe recently was able to push through a window screen and bark for help from a porch roof.

The canines were rescued by Tom Connors, director of the Carbon County Animal Shelter, in the early morning hours of Sept. 28. New homes are needed for the dogs.

“A dog was out on the porch roof barking, and a neighbor reported it,” Connors said. “The neighbor said they had heard dogs barking constantly in the apartment for three days.”

Connors believes the dog, later named Rufus (as in “roof”), was able to push through the window, then fall or jump to the porch roof below.

He climbed a ladder in the dark and retrieved the dog.

“They were going to call the fire department but I said to let those guys sleep,” Connors said.

With Rufus safe, a maintenance worker for the property allowed police and Connors access to the apartment where Rufus had been kept.

That’s when they saw the other dog, Prada.

“Rufus is definitely a survivor and helped Prada, a female shepherd, as well,” the shelter posted on its Facebook page this week, when it announced the rescue.

Connors said some dry food was left for the dogs. There were two water bowls inside the apartment but both were bone dry. Feces littered the floors.

At first, Connors believed the dogs’ owners had gone away for the weekend. He posted a notice on the door to let them know that the shelter had the dogs.

“Then we found out that they moved and left the dogs behind,” Connors said. “They figured sooner or later someone would find them.”

He has no idea how long Rufus and Prada were left alone.

Shelter officials didn’t know the owners’ names until they scanned the dogs for microchips. It turned out that one of them had one.

Connors called the owners’ numbers but no one answered. He left messages but no one returned calls. They eventually stopped accepting calls.

“Hopefully someone will give both of the dogs a home. They are friendly and loving,” he said. “They don’t have to be adopted together.”

Prada is about 3½ years old, and Rufus is around 3.

A recent checkup revealed that Rufus has heart worm.

“He’s getting treatment now. We believe we caught it early enough,” Connors said.

While the two get along, they don’t have to be adopted together.

“We just want to find them good homes,” Connors said.

The shelter can be contacted at 570-325-4828.