Somewhere on the boiling-hot streets of Queens, there may be a scared, sick dog who was stolen by accident and desperately needs to get back home.
Max, a 16-year-old white Maltese, needs his liver medication and must get out of the heat soon.
If not, owner Robert Wolfe fears the worst.
The trouble started when Wolfe’s Mercedes convertible was stolen right in front of him Thursday at 35-35 95th St. in Jackson Heights.
Inside were his wallet, keys, more than two dozen credit cards and his most precious possession, the fluffy white pooch who’s lived with him since he was a pup.
“I’ve been hysterical,” said Wolfe, 47, who sufferer from lupus and lives alone in Floral Park.
“I’m so close to that dog, he said. “It doesn’t seem right to be home without him here. Everything reminds me of him – his ball, his toys, his little shirts and collars.”
After dropping off a friend at a Jackson Heights building Thursday evening, Wolfe took a package out of the trunk – then saw a teenager run up to the car.
“He jumped in. I tried to stop him, but he tore off,” he said.
“He probably didn’t even know there was a dog inside.”
Cops found the Mercedes abandoned about six blocks away – minus Wolfe’s valuables and the 16-pound Max.
Barely able to walk and missing his liver medication, Max can’t survive on his own, Wolfe said.
Wolfe said he drove around the neighborhood for hours that night but failed to spot his best friend.
He’s been so sick with worry that he’s hardly slept.
“Who knows what [the thief] did with him?” he said. “It’s devastating.”