Girl seen wandering neighborhood with dog had been abandoned by mom

A “hungry” child found roaming a Florida residential neighborhood with her dog had been abandoned by her homeless mother, according to investigators.

The girl’s plight was discovered around 4:30 p.m. Friday, April 4, when deputies were summoned to a home near Deltona’s Vann Park, the Volusia Sheriff’s Office said in an April 5 news release. Deltona is about a 30-mile drive north of Orlando.

“A woman saw a 6-year-old child and her dog wandering in her front yard, then found her sitting in a chair in her carport,” the sheriff’s office said.

“The girl said she was hot, thirsty and hungry, so the woman and a neighbor brought her food, water, toys and clean clothes. … Responding deputies learned the girl’s mom and mom’s boyfriend dropped her off in the area in the morning.”

Deltona Fire Rescue responded to the home and concluded the girl was not in need of emergency care, officials said.

An investigation revealed she was homeless, does not attend school and had been “dropped off” that morning at the park by her mom and her mom’s boyfriend, officials said. Her dog’s name is Ghost, the girl told deputies.

The child said her mom explained “they had to go somewhere” and did not say if they would be back, according to a video posted by the sheriff’s office.