Watch: Rescuers Send Brave Boy Down Hole To Pull 6-Week-Old Puppies to Safety

By Amanda Thomason March 28, 2019 at 2:25pm

It takes a village to rescue and rehab lost and/or abused dogs. Time, effort and money go into giving rescue pups their best shot at life.

Last fall, Stefani Nelson noticed a brown and white boxer mix wandering around in Madera, California.

“I spotted the mama dog in an orchard on my way to work one morning about a month ago,” she commented on a post by Bowe’s Adoptable Rescued Pups on Sept. 21. “It was just last week when I saw her again. Found out about the pups from the farmer when I was out feeding her.”

When Bowe’s Adoptable Rescued Pups and Pinky Paws Search & ResQ came together to try to locate the mom and pups, they found out that the mama was smart. She’d had her puppies in the ground, away from coyotes.

“We were able to join up with PinkPaws on a rescue mission for a mom living in an orchard with her 3 pups,” Bowe’s wrote in a Facebook post on Sept. 19. “Mom and pups are with the other rescue at the moment but should be with us Saturday.”

Apparently, mama dog (later named Josephine) had found an old rabbit or squirrel hole in an orchard and decided to make use of it. Rescuers had to dig it out so they’d have a chance of getting to the pups they could see but not reach.

Even after digging out the hole a bit, the adults couldn’t quite get to the pups. So, they called in a favor.

“We called my friend with her children because one of them’s tall and skinny,” Krystle Woodward with Pinky Paws ResQ told The Dodo. “So he just went right in there.”

The lanky boy was able to wriggle in with a light, grab a puppy, and get hauled out by the feet until they had all three puppies safely out. Since the pups had never had human interaction before, they resisted rescue attempts by crying, growling and trying to dig away.

Once they got all the puppies, it was time to catch Josephine. They knew she’d try to reach her puppies, so they put the pups in one cage and a humane trap next to it. Josephine went in, and they had the little family at last.

Since their rescue, the pups have all grown well, have been socialized, have learned basic obedience commands and have found their forever homes. Josephine had some issues to work through and is being rehabilitated.

“We got Josephine all settled in yesterday,” Pinky Paws wrote on Nov. 25. “I admit I was worried before. But she did great with me as soon as I unloaded her.”

“She still barks at hubby. We will be rehabbing her to trust other good people. Thank you Megan and Bowes Adoptable for her love and care and for getting her healthy.”

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