Firefighters Rescue ‘Puppies’ From Storm Drain, Learning They Were Not Actually Puppies At All
20. Every Day, Rescuing Us
Firefighters are nothing but brave! The men and women that choose this career have been behind incredible rescues. One amazing rescue mission was when the Colorado Springs fire department got a call about some strange noises that could be hard from a Storm Drain. It seems some newborn puppies were stuck there and someone had to come to rescue them.
The firefighters had no idea that these puppies were very different! What could they be?
Firefighters are always ready to face challenging rescue missions. They are specially trained to deal with strange situations, but this time they were left speechless… They were going to save some baby animals. What could go wrong?
Wait until you see when they discover the truth about the animals they rescued!
19. Calling the Colorado Springs Fire Department
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The fire department got a strange call. Someone hear animals crying in a storm drain. With the harsh forecast for that day, everybody knew it rain a lot, so the critters inside were in trouble if nobody would come to pick them up…
18. They Got There In Time!
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Thankfully, the firefighters got there in time and were ready with all the tools needed for an animal rescue. They had to act fast, so they pulled up into the neighborhood and headed to the storm drain from which they could hear the animals’ cries. How did these puppies end there?
17. Taking The Animals To Safety
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The rescuers took a good look into the storm drain and laid down some fabric to place the little animals that turned out to be puppies! They had no idea how long these babies were inside that drain…
Wait until you see how many there are!
16. They Started Counting The Puppies
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The little animals were probably dehydrated, as they were abandoned there, and there was no sight of their mom around the neighborhood. The firefighters began counting the puppies.
Can you guess how many there were?
15. Who Put These Pups In Here?
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Who could have placed the entire litter here? They were too small to go on their own, and a female dog wouldn’t choose a drain to have her litter of puppies… Someone might have placed them there to get rid of them. Who would do this thing, everyone wondered. Then, they finally learn the truth!
14. Unwanted Dog Pregnancy?
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The members of the rescue team supposed this was one of the unplanned pet pregnancies that many irresponsible owners solve by dumping the puppies, thinking someone might hear them and rescue them. One by one, the firefighter started pulling the puppies on the sheet…
13. Eight Little Puppies!
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The firefighter took out all the puppies and then counted them: there were eight puppies and looked all right. It was time to take them to the vet and make sure they are healthy.
These pups looked like a regular litter of Labrador newborn puppies. But that's where everyone was wong!
12. Searching for the Mother
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Before leaving for the vet, the rescue team looked around the neighborhood for the puppies’ mother, but she wasn’t around. They had to get the litter to the vet and make sure that all eight puppies were going to get all the care they needed.
11. To the Humane Society
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The rescuers took the litter to the Humane Society of the Pikes Region and waited for the vet to check up on them. But that’s where the team found out that these were not dogs! That was quite surprising news for everyone!
10. They Looked Like Newborn Dogs
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What did the firefighters save if not dog puppies? These little guys looked like Labradors, and Colorado Springs Fire Captain Brian Vaughn recalls the entire incident at the shelter: “one of the vets in that location said, ‘No, these aren’t Labradors…”
Here’s where things get really complicated!
9. They Weren’t Labrador Puppies
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Believe it or not, but the firefighters actually rescued the wrong animals from that storm drain and even complicated things…
As you can see in this image, the two newborns are similar, but Labrador puppies are a little larger. So what species was this litter?
8. Saving A Litter of Baby Red Foxes
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You read that right! Those were actually baby red foxes, and when Vaughn heard it from the vets, they were stunned! But one expert explained in an interview with CBS how finding fox litters in odd places was not uncommon…
Here’s what happened to the baby foxes after the rescue mission.
7. Living In The Wild And In Suburbs
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Red foxes are very smart, explained Colorado Parks and Wildlife District Wildlife manager, Travis Sauder in an interview with CBS. He said that it was the time of the year when foxes have their young, so the chances of coming across fox kits were pretty high.
That’s not the end of the story, because the firefighters have to take the babies back to the drain. Here’s why…
6. Back to the Fox’s Den
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It seems that the storm drain was the perfect den for a fox, explained Travis:
“These animals are going to be put back where we found them, hoping that the mother is still in the area and can pick up the normal duties like she would.” But the rescue team also had a back-up plan if the mom wouldn’t show up.
5. Waiting for the Mom to Show Up
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The firefighters and volunteers placed back the fox kits and waited far away for the mom to show up. After a few hours, they concluded that she might have returned while her babies were away and knew that they were gone. She didn’t come back, and the team turned to plan B.
4. Animal Clinic of Woodland Park
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Because the mom didn’t come back for her litter, the fox kits were taken to the Animal Clinic of Woodland Park where caretakers would hand rear them and finally release them back into the wild.
3. Encountering Wild Animals
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Experts recommend people to call the authorities when they encounter an animal in need. These baby foxes were probably off better in the care of the Animal Clinic now that the mom was nowhere to be found.
2. Red Foxes As Pets
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If they would have been rescued by inexperienced people, some families would have ended up adopting baby foxes, and wouldn’t that be confusing when your mixed breed Labrador puppy grows to be a red fox? And having a red fox as a pet is not a good idea because you can't just feed them with Purina dog food or give them premium dog treats!
1. Always Call the Experts
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In conclusion, it’s always best to call the experts who know what kind of animals they are dealing with - it can be dangerous and you might need to think of health insurance in case you get hurt.
We must admit that, in the firefighter’s defense, these pups really looked like baby dogs and not foxes. Thanks to them, they have a new chance at living their life in the wild once they are rehabilitated.
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