Left for dead on the side of the road just off Idaho’s Interstate 15, a collie mix pregnant with nine puppies was found shot in the back. The Idaho State Journal reported Friday that a Pocatello area couple saved the dog and her nine puppies’ lives.
Beth Stenberg had seen the dog before wandering down the highway, but this time noticed the dog injured at the side of the road and then called Idaho State Police who sent two troopers to help her get the dog into her car so it could be transported to emergency care. She then drove the gunshot wounded dog to an emergency veterinarian where it was discovered that she was very pregnant with nine puppies.
The particular bullet used on the dog was a varmint load which is designed to fragment into tiny pieces of shrapnel, much of which unfortunately could not be removed from the dog’s back and shoulders. The dog was approximately two weeks from delivery, which complicated and delayed her recovery process.
The Stenberg family which already consisted of the loving couple (Beth and Mark,) their two sons, two cats and a dog didn’t hesitate to take home the pregnant dog, who is now being called “Sis.” The nine puppies were born about two weeks later, and were named: Trip, Dottie, Rogue, Suzie, Sassy, Oden, Chuck, Petunia and Valentine. According to the Idaho State Journal, “Stenberg also posted photos and a story about Sis’s rescue on her Facebook page. The news spread like wildfire and soon the Stenberg family was receiving donations of pet supplies and cash from people throughout the U.S. She has also been able to place most of the puppies when they are old enough to be on their own.”
“People want to know what’s going on,” Stenberg said. “It was absolutely amazing. I had been feeling a little disenchanted with the human race, and this changed that.”
A woman in Seattle, who is an agility trainer, has put dibs on one of the pups and another is going to a trail runner and skier whose dog died last year.
The remaining dogs will be available once they are old enough, but their mother has found herself a forever home with the Stenberg family.
