PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Eight newborn puppies were rescued by a good Samaritan on Friday, who found them abandoned in a bag in a shopping cart outside a Target in South Philadelphia.
The good Samaritan brought the hours-old pups to ACCT Philly. They were taken under the care of partner organization Outcast Rescue in Lehigh County, where they are being nursed back to health.
“They literally threw these puppies away like they were garbage,” said Outcast Board Director Beth Hucke. “What would cause somebody to just toss babies into a shopping cart?”
An incubator has helped restore their body temperatures, though two of the pups have frostbite. Good meals and flushed kidneys also resolved the problem of urinating blood. Hucke is bottle-feeding them, but the two female runts are not taking to it well.
“I’m not 100% sure that they’re going to make it,” she said. “They’re still struggling to eat. They’re being tube-fed.”
The puppies are still weeks away from even opening their eyes and ears, meaning they’re totally dependent on Hucke.
“It’s very messy, especially when there are so many. It’s a lot of work for the next few weeks,” she said. “I haven’t slept in two days because I hear one little peep in the incubator and I’m checking everybody to make sure everybody’s OK.”
As much as the fatigue weighs on Hucke, she’s bothered more that the whereabouts of the puppies’ mother are unknown. She said this outcome could have been avoided by spaying her ahead of time or surrendering the puppies responsibly.
“There are resources out there. They could have just walked into ACCT Philly or PSPCA and handed the puppies over. There wouldn’t have been any questions asked,” she said. “ACCT would have welcomed these puppies with open arms to get them to safety, as opposed to doing something that’s just inhumane.”
The Pennsylvania SPCA is investigating the incident.