Should This Dog Go Back to the Owner?

\


Luckily for this dog, she was picked up by SPCA staff because she was found running at large.  We were shocked by her appearance.  Every rib, her hip bones, and her spine were clearly visible.  Her teats were enlarged and our original thought was that she had been nursing puppies.  The picture on the left was the day of her arrival, she weighed 37.2 pounds.

Imagine our surprise when the owner came to claim her.  When I refused to hand over the dog, he said that she had three week old puppies.  I asked him to bring in the puppies and when he balked, I told him that I would return the puppies if he brought them in.  There were nine pups! And they were not big bellied and roley polley.

After one week, this dog gained five pounds while still nursing nine puppies!  After one more week she was up to 49.6 pounds.  See the picture on the right.  Her body has filled out and she is full of milk for her puppies.

Now all we have to do is file cruelty charges and hope that the judge agrees that this owner should not have his dog and puppies back.  Keep your fingers crossed.