Seven helpless puppies are safe, warm and in the capable care of Harbor Humane Society after surviving a terrible storm. Abandoned with nothing but a cardboard box for shelter, the pups, who are about four weeks old, withstood low temps, pouring rain, and howling winds before being rescued by police.
Responding to a call from a good Samaritan, the Ottawa County Sheriff’s office discovered the pups huddled in a cardboard box on the side of the road near Holland, Michigan.
Harbor Humane Society says the call came just in time, as the puppies couldn’t have survived much longer. They arrived “soaking wet with low temperatures” on Saturday, November 5. As of Sunday, two of the pups were still battling for their lives in critical condition.
“It breaks our hearts that things happened this way,” Harbor Humane Society wrote on Facebook. “Had they reached out to Harbor, we would have been more than willing to help, and this dangerous situation could have been avoided.”
“We never want to see an animal abandoned and truly will never turn away a person or pet in a real emergency, even when we are bursting at the seams,” they added.
The shelter is currently dealing with overcrowding with 207 cats and 45 dogs on site and 160 cats and 45 dogs in foster care.
“We just can’t keep up,” Harbor Humane wrote in a Facebook post on November 2. “We are facing the consequences of Covid, of surgery being halted early in the pandemic, and of vet practices having limited operations for the longest time.”
Despite these hardships, the staff reminded the community that they are there to help in any way they can. Their goal is always to keep pets at home with their families and out of the shelter system.
As for the puppies, five are enjoying the good life in loving foster homes, while the two critical babies are in the care of an experienced staff member. Since they are so young, they are not yet available for adoption. For now, they will remain in foster care growing bigger and stronger every day.
If you would like to help Harbor Humane Society cover the costs of caring for the puppies and the other animal in their care, please consider making a donation. Anyone with information on who abandoned and endangered the helpless pups is urged to reach out to the shelter or the Ottawa County sheriff’s office.
Toledo, United States.
