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Woman Spots Dog Outside Of An Abandoned House And Realizes She’s Not Alone

When rescuer Donna Lochmann drove up to an empty house in St. Louis, Missouri, she thought there would be just one adult dog living there. Stray Rescue of St. Louis (SRSL) got a call about her from a good Samaritan who said the dog’s family had moved and left her behind.

Even though the house was empty and the dog was standing alone in front, she was not alone. After a few seconds, Lochmann saw that there were two more sets of eyes watching her from behind the fence.

STRAY RESCUE OF ST. LOUIS

The chief life-saving officer at SRSL, Lochmann, told The Dodo that the two puppies looked to be between 6 and 8 weeks old.

Lochmann had no trouble getting the mother dog into her car, but it was harder for her to catch the pups.

STRAY RESCUE OF ST. LOUIS

“On the other side of the fence, someone had dug out a concrete patio, and the puppies kept going in there,” Lochmann said. “It’s likely that they stayed there most of the time because it was safe.”

Lochmann put her arm under the patio and after a few tries, she was able to grab the smaller puppy. However, the bigger puppy didn’t like it.

“I really didn’t want to pull the bigger one out,” Lochmann said. “She kept biting me with her razor-sharp puppy teeth, but I didn’t give up.”

STRAY RESCUE OF ST. LOUIS

So she wouldn’t hurt her hand, Lochmann grabbed a thick glove and put her hand through the opening again. She finally caught the scared puppy.

Lochmann took Pumpkin Patch, the mother dog, and Eckert and Stuckmeyer, her two puppies, to the vet. Since the tests showed that all three dogs were healthy, they were put into foster care right away.

STRAY RESCUE OF ST. LOUIS

Eckert and Stuckmeyer are being cared for in the same home right now. Lochmann said that they are still both very scared and need to meet more people. But the adult dogs in their foster family are friendly, so they should warm up to them quickly.

“The adult dogs are playing with the puppies and starting to teach them how to be dogs,” Lochmann said.

Pumpkin Patch has also been taken to a foster home, where she gets lots of love, food, and a warm bed every night.

STRAY RESCUE OF ST. LOUIS

Staff at Stray Rescue of St. Louis will miss Pumpkin Patch and her puppies, but they are so happy that all three dogs will finally get to live the happy lives they deserve.

“Everyone is now living in a house and learning what it’s like to live there instead of on the street,” Lochmann said. “Things are so much better for them now.”