A Vancouver Island pet owner could face cruelty charges after the rescue of seven puppies and a mother dog so malnourished they were eating rocks and sticks to stay alive.
The emaciated German shepherd-cross dogs were surrendered to the BC SPCA by their Ladysmith owner on Monday and rushed to the Island Veterinary Hospital for emergency care.
"The mother was shaking violently from dehydration, malnutrition and was balancing on three legs because of an injury, but she was still trying to encourage her emaciated puppies to nurse," SPCA constable Julie Hitchcock said in a release.
"It was heartbreaking to see her trying so hard to nurture her puppies under such hopeless circumstances."
She discovered the starving animals by accident while responding to another complaint in the neighbourhood. Six of the puppies were just 12 weeks old, while the seventh was a nine-month-old animal from a previous litter.
The SPCA says that the dogs had no food, water or shelter, and their living space was strewn with sharp objects. One of the puppies will need to have its full tail and part of one foot amputated because of infections to untreated cuts.
Hitchcock described the dogs' condition as "scary," and said that they wouldn't have survived much longer without intervention.
"The body conditioning scale for dogs is measured from one to nine, with one being emaciated and nine being obese," she said. "At barely six pounds, these puppies didn't even score a zero on that scale."
The mother dog and oldest puppy are still under veterinary care, while five of the puppies are at the Nanaimo SPCA shelter and one is living with a foster family. Animal cruelty officers are investigating the case and charges are pending against the owner.
Anyone interested in helping to pay for the injured puppy's surgery or the special food required to feed the dogs can donate through the BC SPCA website.
