A Tamaqua man is offering a $100 cash reward to bring a stray dog back to its home.

Justin Martinson, who lives on the 100 block of Coal Street, said he will personally foot the sum to whomever is able to successfully retrieve a female husky, pit bull mix.

Martinson said the dog, who is not his, got loose from Spruce Street on Dec. 19.

He said the dog, whose name he is unsure of, has been out in the brutally cold outdoors.

On the night of Dec. 19, Martinson said he was coming home and saw a guy walking around with a flashlight who said he was looking for a dog.

Martinson said he and his girlfriend looked for the dog for about an hour that night.

“We knew the dog was going to start getting cold, it would need food and water,” Martinson said.

Martinson said the Christmas Eve snowstorm helped, as he was able to track and see the dog, for which he spent about 4½ hours looking for.

But, Martinson said the dog was still pretty fast at that point, and therefore, he wasn’t able to catch her.

Martinson said the Tamaqua Animal Shelter put out a cage two nights ago, but the dog went into the cage and picked out the food without going in.

“We’ve had a bunch of neighbors in the South Ward putting food and blankets out to give her some kind of calories,” he said.

Martinson explained his reason for putting the reward out.

“I put the $100 reward out because I want this dog out of the cold and into a warm house,” he said. “I love dogs, I have two.”

Martinson added, “We do put eyes on her most every day. She’s been hanging out at the (high school) football field for most of this last week-and-a-half.”

However, he cautioned people not to chase after the dog, but rather, to walk toward her, as she can be “real skittish.”

Anyone who is able to catch the dog should call Martinson at 570-225-8680 to collect the reward.