A dog and her four newborn puppies have been found abandoned on the side of a highway close to the LA wildfires.
Over the past few days, the world has watched as devastating wildfires have laid waste to countless homes across the Los Angeles area. At least 24 people are confirmed to have died since the blazes began, with the potentially more casualties to come.
Though it is almost impossible to know the number of animals and pets that might have fallen victim to the fires, what’s almost certain is that Taylor the dog and her litter of 6-day-old puppies would have been among those to perish were it not for the fateful intervention of a passerby.
Kaitlyn Morris, social media manager at the Beagle Freedom Project (BFP) animal rescue, told Newsweek about the circumstances that led to the dogs ending up there.
“This sweet family was brought to the shelter by a good Samaritan, who stated that they found them in a charred laundry basket on the side of the highway during the fire evacuations,” Morris said. “They came to the shelter in the basket, shaking and terrified.”
Morris said the BFP was enlisted to help care for the dogs as city shelters are extremely overwhelmed with thousands of displaced and abandoned animals who have been abandoned due to the LA wildfires.
Thankfully, the BFP had an emergency foster who was ready and willing to take care of all five dogs in the short-term.
What led to Taylor and her puppies being dumped at the side of the road is, of course, unknown. “It’s possible their ‘family’ didn’t have room for them in their car,” Morris said. “We want to give their previous family the benefit of the doubt as this is a challenging time for everyone, but it’s hard to imagine why someone would do something like this as they were in immense and immediate danger.”
What was clear, however, was that these dogs had been through an ordeal that no animal should have to go through. As a video posted to the BFP TikTok page put it, these dogs “deserved better.” Morris said that, had it not been for the good Samaritan who picked them up, then the dogs would have most likely died as they were found right near the fires.
“Taylor is very underweight and has some minor burns on her body and paws. One of her four puppies, a beige little girl, has burns on her paw and nose,” Morris said.
Taylor (right) and one of her puppies (left) rest with minor burns. Had they not been rescued by a passing good Samaritan, all might have died.
The Beagle Freedom Project
Thankfully, with the help of their dedicated foster mom providing round-the-clock care and some medication, all of the dogs are expected to make a full recovery. Whether they are left with psychological scars from their experience remains to be seen. So far, though, the outlook is good.
“Taylor is very sad and exhausted after what she went through, but she’s finally starting to soak up the love,” Morris said. “She’s a very dedicated mommy, keeping a constant watchful eye on her puppies.”
For now, the focus is on getting all of the dogs back to full health, but, once they are, the next step is to find them forever homes. The puppies are 5 weeks old. Adoption applications will open when they are around 8 weeks old.
“They’d love homes with other active young dogs to play with them, as puppies have lots of energy,” Morris said. Taylor, meanwhile, might need something a little different from a prospective forever home.
“Taylor is a very gentle soul who seems to get along well with humans. She’s tired and traumatized so her true personality is still blooming, but we do know that she’s a lover who just wants cuddles,” Morris said. “She loves other dogs as well, so she’d enjoy having a furry sibling.”
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