A mother dog who was beaten and force-fed drugs and alcohol, is now safely in the care of a foster home alongside her 10 puppies after being rescued by the BC SPCA.
A search warrant was issued to seize the dog and her puppies after a concerned citizen called in to report seeing the four-year-old German short-haired pointer being abused and forced fed drugs and alcohol by her owner, in addition to witnessing one of her puppies also being physically abused.
A medical check was conducted by a veterinarian, which revealed fractures and scarring, evidence of past abuse. A toxicity test was also done, confirming toxic ingestion. The dogs were taken to the BC SPCA in Prince George where they received a lot of love from the staff.
“Mama dog loves humans,” says Rachel Cook, animal welfare officer, North Cariboo District Branch. “She wants to sit on your lap. She wants to hold hands with her paw. She’s just so sweet.”
Alex Schare, manager of the Prince George SPCA, says the SPCA’s cruelty investigations team is so important in cases like these. “If it wasn’t for them this dog would likely still be in this very bad situation with her puppies and both her and their welfare would be poor. She deserves great treatment and that is not what she was getting before.”
Currently, mama dog and her two-week old puppies are now in a safe foster home where they are doing well. All 10 puppies are currently thriving and gaining weight and have just opened their eyes. The puppies will be ready for adoption once they reach eight weeks old. Mama dog will be ready for adoption shortly after that once she’s been spayed.
“She is doing well and doing such a great job looking after her babies. She is going to make a great family dog in a few months,” says Cook. “They’ve been through a lot. We’re so proud of them.”