We shake our heads everyday and say to each other that no one would believe half of of the things that we experience. The callousness of people toward animals is hard to bear. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, something else crazy happens.
Chain of Hope received a message from someone saying that they had 7 puppies that they couldn’t take care of anymore and could we come and get them. I returned the call and it sounded like a young person. They told me that the puppies were 5 weeks old. I asked them if they were keeping the mother and the kid replied that they had already given her away! I told him that these puppies still needed their momma at 5 weeks. I asked him if they could get momma back and I would take the puppies and her. He told me that the people really wanted her. I told him that we would spay this momma dog for free.
I headed over. There were a lot of steps up to this house on a hill. The house had a large porch, with about a 3 ft. stone wall around it. Where the steps met the porch, there was a big piece of cardboard across there, so I knew the puppies were on the porch. When I got up there, the 7 puppies were indeed on the porch, huddled together under a table. They were tiny and scrawny, poor things. Why in the world had these idiots given the momma away so soon when her puppies still needed her?
I knocked on the door and a teenager answered. I asked if they had called about the puppies and he said yes. We stood there and talked for a bit. I had a relinquishment form for him to sign them over to me. I had pre-filled it out and had put 7 puppies on the line showing what they were relinquishing to us. I gave it to him to sign and he immediately said, “Oh no-I am not giving you 7 of them!” This kind of thing happens to us all the time when puppies are involved. They always want to keep some. He said his friend was taking 2 and he was keeping one. I told him that he had called for us to come and get 7 puppies and I was there to get 7 puppies. He argued with me and finally told me that he was going to call the police. I told him that was fine-I wasn’t doing anything wrong. They had called for me to come and get the puppies and I was there to get the puppies.
Things were not going well. I asked this kid how old he was and he said he was 13. After being there a while and having a lot of frustrating dialog, the kid finally admitted that the momma was at animal control! He told me that she had been picked up loose as a stray. I asked him if they were going to go and get her and he said no. I asked him what they were feeding the puppies and he told me that they were feeding them rice. This kid was unbelievable. I finally told him that I needed to speak with one of his parents. He said he could call his dad at work, but of course he put a friend on there trying to act like his dad and it was very obvious that this was also a young person. I tossed his phone on top of the wall and asked him if he thought I was stupid.
I was angry and upset because I desperately wanted to leave with all 7 puppies and it wasn’t happening. I’d already been there almost 1/2 hour trying to reason with a moron. I finally told him that animal control didn’t know that she had a litter of puppies that were only 5 weeks old. I told him that I was going to call them and let them know that they had a nursing momma at the shelter and her babies needed her. This kid looked right at me and said, “F***animal control, F***the police and F**** you! Oh, man-I was very mad and I was mentally and emotionally exhausted after being there trying to think of every avenue to get all of these puppies out of here. We don’t like to do this and we don’t do it very often, but I finally offered him money just to get them all out of there and he said no. I finally had had enough. I told him he had a piss poor attitude and I turned and started walking down the steps, empty handed. I just wanted out of here. I’d been arguing with this imbecile all morning. I wasn’t saying anything and I had my keys in my hand. As I almost got to the bottom of the stairs, the kid yelled at me to get the puppies. I yelled back at him, “you get them” and I got into my car. I looked up at the porch and saw him scrambling around trying to get them. He came down the steps with 2 of them in his arms. He asked me where he should put them. I said nothing but pointed to the obvious, large dog kennel that I had in the back of my SUV. He put them in there and went back up the stairs. Pretty soon, here he came down with 2 more in his arms. I got out and opened the kennel and he put them in there. It was all I could get. I was broken hearted. I had felt like leaving and just getting out of there because I was so mad and upset, but I kept telling myself to get the ones out of there that I could and save them at least. I left with 4 and some not so kind words for the brat. This kid was going to be another nightmare for the KCMO police department in no time I’m sure.
We got the puppies back to Chain of Hope and got them settled. We made them some gruel with formula and canned food and they devoured it. We de-wormed them. They were skinny, scrawny and shy, the poor little things. They really needed their momma’s good milk.
I called over to the shelter to verify that momma was there and she was! I told them that she still had 3 pathetic puppies over there and asked them to get animal control over there to try and remove them as well. The shelter had to hold momma for 5 days because she’d been a “stray”, so she had to wait a few more days. I went over to the shelter to see her. She was a skinny black and white lab mix, about 35 lbs. She was blind in one eye. I felt so sorry for her. She had milk for her babies. I told the shelter that Chain of Hope would pull her and get her back with her 4 puppies as soon as she was able to leave.
In the meantime, the 4 puppies were full of worms. So glad they were getting rid of them-they would feel better soon. The day I could pick up momma came and I went over and got her. She was high strung and nervous, but how couldn’t she be with everything she’d been through?
She was starving when she got in my car! She ripped open a bag of milk bones and ate the entire bag!
I was so excited for momma and babies to be back together. I have a very sweet video of me bringing momma into their room and they see each other for the first time in almost a week! It will warm your heart.
These little ones would not leave momma alone for the first 2-3 days. When it seemed like they were somewhat caught up, satisfied and momma’s milk was cranking again, they were doing fantastic. Of course, we were always thinking about the other 3. I talked to the shelter again. Animal control had been back over there twice and no one would answer the door either time and they did not see the puppies. What I did find out from them was that this little momma, who we had named Maia, wasn’t loose that day. These people had tied her up to their front door, called animal control and reported her as a stray and watched as they hauled her off to the shelter. They purposely sent her away from her 5 week old puppies. Are there even words for people like this??? Maia so didn’t deserve this and neither did her babies who had been eating rice because they didn’t have her with them.
We brought Maia back to Chain of Hope. Everyone was glad to see her finally arrive.
These puppies were adorable. There were 3 boys and one girl. They were so tiny but they would thrive now that momma was here to feed them her good stuff!
The little family was reunited. Our prayers and thoughts go with the other 3. The puppies nursed very well for about 10 days and then Maia started breaking with kennel cough from the shelter. We needed to pull her off of the puppies so that we could treat her with medication and breathing treatments. She was pretty sick. It was ok, though, because these puppies had nursed for 10 more days and they were healthy, fat and happy!
A few days later, the puppies left for foster homes and Maia began getting better.
Here are Bart and Monty in their foster home!
Here are Norman and Margo shopping with foster mom, April, at PetSmart.
And, having fun in their foster home!
Maia has had or needs a lot of medical done to her. She has been spayed, vaccinated, de-wormed, flea treatment put on her, heart worm test (which was positive), kennel cough medications, breathing treatments and her very expensive heart worm treatment which she will have in the near future. Thank you for your donations so that we can do everything we can for Maia. She deserves it!
