Girl, 10, rides in cage with dog in back of pickup, parents charged, say Pa. police

(CBS/AP) MILLVALE, Pa. - Two parents face charges after authorities say motorists spied a 10-year-old girl riding in a dog cage in the back of a pickup truck in western Pennsylvania.

PICTURES: Questionable Parenting?

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review reports police say it happened around 7 p.m. Monday on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Millvale, just outside Pittsburgh. Authorities say they responded after getting reports from motorists saying they saw the girl riding in the back of the truck in the cage.

The girl's mother, 29-year-old Abbey Carlson, and stepfather, 30-year-old Thomas Fishinger, are now facing charges of endangering the welfare of a child. Police say they told them the girl had said she wanted to be with the dog.

"She wanted to be with her dog. She plays with him in here all the time. They were strapped in," Carlson said in an interview with CBS Pittsburgh.

The couple claims the dog started to cry during the drive home, so they decided to let their daughter climb in the cage with the animal.

"I don't want the dog to suffer. That's like animal cruelty to me, you know, the dog crying like that," Fishinger told the station.

"I didn't think it was that big of a deal. We weren't going fast. We weren't," Carlson said.

Fishinger claims he used two "ratchet straps" to hold the cage down and act as a "seat belt."

Both Carlson and Fishinger say they now realize their actions were a big mistake.

"Oh, my God yes. I would never hurt my daughter," Fishinger said. "She will never get in the back of a truck again."

Carlson and Fishinger were released on their own recognizance and the 10-year-old is currently in the care of Carlson's mother, the station reports.