A few weeks ago, we received a call from a local advocate that rescues cats to be spayed or neutered. She was very upset about puppies of all things! She is an elderly woman with a heart of gold, so when I called her to ask how I could help, she was very upset. She told me that she had heard about a man threatening to “get rid” of 11 puppies. She said that she did speak with him once at that point but had not been able to reach him since the first time. I explained to her that if she was able to reach him, we would help. That was early morning. She called back before noon to say that she had reached him and he was willing to talk to me.
When I called him, I introduced myself. I asked about his situation. He confirmed there were 11 puppies and they had Mom and Dad. He stated that there had been previous litters but he had always been able to “place” them. They could no longer care for these puppies. The man was not very lucid and hard to understand. I wasn’t sure if it was a wild goose chase. I told him that I would take the puppies for free but that we would also like to spay and neuter Mom and Dad for free. He agreed.
Next was getting the puppies to us. When I asked when he could bring them, he told me that he had no transportation. I asked what his address was. He had a Springfield address. Another obstacle. I told him that I would get back to him to see how we could help. He agreed to wait for a call. I really was nervous about going to someone’s house so I called my friends at Clark County Dog Shelter. I explained the situation and asked if anything could be done. She said I will send one of my officers out there now. I told her that if they were able to get the puppies along with Mom and Dad, I would be on my way. She dispatched an officer. I called the owner to alert him that an officer would be coming to his house to pick everyone up. This set off some alarm bells and he said NO. In his mind, he wasn’t going to get his dogs back. I gave him my word that he would. He relented.
Now I had to get everyone else in the building involved. We didn’t have any vet time left that day so I drew up 11 DHPP and bordatella vaccines and notified our Foster Coordinator so she could get fosters lined up. We got in the van, drove to Clark County and vaccinated the puppies along with Mom and Dad and drove back to SICSA. All 11 puppies went to foster that day.
Our Vet Clinic staff was phenomenal. They were able to get to Mom and Dad the next day. When I went back on Friday morning, I loaded up Mom and Dad and brought them back. The dogs were not licensed but instead of fining them or impounding them, they took them back home and took the time to educate them about the importance of vaccinating as well as cleanliness. They will continue to follow up with this owner. The puppies remain in foster care as of now.
-Written by our Help Center Team
