ALLIANCE, Ohio -- A puppy was abandoned in Alliance on one of the coldest nights of the year with a note attached to him, and now the loveable pup needs a new home.

A four-legged victim of the economy, it's hard to understand why anyone could abandon the dog, but someone apparently did, reported NewsChannel5's Tracy Carloss.

The animal appeared in Cecilia Miller's back yard and her grandson spotted him, but the puppy wouldn't come near anyone.

That's when Miller called her neighbor, lifelong dog lover Wanda Martin. Martin found the animal curled up outside a basement window, looking in at her dogs.

"I took a pillow and a comforter and put it in the dirt, and the next day took cheese out of my pocket and gave it to him. From then on, we were buddies," Martin said.

A couple of days went by before the dog would let Martin near him. When she finally got close, she found a note tucked in the puppy's collar, a message written on notebook paper by the hands of a child.

It read, "Hi, my name is Kujo. I am a nice dog. My owner can't feed me. Please help me. I'm great with kids too."

The note ended with an exclamation point and a smiley face that broke the hearts of the two neighbors.

"I cried, I was so upset. I couldn't imagine anyone doing that to an animal," said Miller.

Kujo, these women surmise, is a victim of the economy. His rescuers can't keep him but want to make sure he finds a good home.