We’ve been worried about a dog named Trina for years, but now we’re finally able to help her and her large new litter of puppies at our Hope Animal Sanctuary.

Trina has had multiple litters of puppies over the past few years, and most of them have tragically been killed on a busy highway near her home. We’ve offered twice to have Trina spayed and returned, but her guardians always refused.

In October, we received a call from the Carroll County Sheriff’s Department alerting us that Trina had given birth under a neighbor’s home. The puppies were right under the homeowner’s bedroom, making noise, which gave their location away.

We advised the deputy to have Trina’s guardian get the puppies out while we made arrangements to take them. She did, but Trina had other ideas about where the puppies should live and began moving them to a new location. Luckily, she was only able to take away one puppy before her guardians noticed one of the puppies was missing and thwarted her plan, preventing her from moving any of the rest of them.

When our operations manager Sharon Stone arrived, Trina was very glad to see her; she knew her from having been fed on a few occasions. Since the puppies had been safely removed from under the neighbor’s home, the transfer to our sanctuary was imminent, but the one puppy was still missing. 

This is where the magic happened. Sharon Stone has run our rescue and rehabilitation efforts for years, and it shows. She put a leash on Trina, and asked her to take her to the puppy, and Trina did just that!

Trina took Sharon to an old abandoned house. Listening closely, Sharon could hear the sounds of the lone puppy!

The deputy started to remove loose boards from the floor inside the house, while Trina was scooting herself underneath the rickety building from the outside to get to her baby. They both got there at the same time, and the deputy pulled Trina and her pup to safety!

Now, Trina and her 10 puppies are all safe at Hope Animal Sanctuary, where they’re getting the care they need. The puppies are now about two weeks old and will stay until they’re ready to be transported north.

We’re thrilled we were finally able to help Trina, who will soon be heartworm tested and spayed, and that she and her newest puppies will all get the loving forever homes they deserve.

You can help support Trina and her puppies, and make more of these life-saving rescues possible by making a donation.