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Eight newborn puppies survive being left in Nottoway dumpsters

Posted at 7:59 PM, Jan 09, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-09 19:59:40-05

NOTTOWAY, Va. -- Nottoway County investigators are looking for who is responsible for throwing newborn puppies wrapped in dog food bags, in dumpsters.

“Somebody put them in an empty dog food bag and proceeded to just dispose of them like they were trash and put them in the dumpster to die,” said Sanctuary Rescue Vet Care Coordinator Nicole Kennedy.

Two of the six didn't survive.

Six puppies were discovered Saturday by a man who was dumpster diving on Davis Mill Road in Nottaway County.  Two were found bloodied and not breathing. The puppies were estimated to be about 10-days old.

“It’s very heartbreaking; they should have their mother they should have the other litter mates that didn’t make it,” said Kennedy.

Two weeks earlier, on December 22, a couple throwing trash away found four puppies in another dumpster on Bible Road in Nottaway county -- about 11 miles away.

Puppies found on Dec. 22, in a dumpster 11 miles away from the one where puppies were left in January.

“They were extremely dehydrated and cold when we found them,” said Kennedy.  “There’s no way they would have made it much longer than what they had cause of the cold temperatures and not having food.”

Sanctuary Rescue  volunteers are nursing the eight puppies from the two litters back to health.

“Right now they just need TLC and formula,” said Kennedy.  “They’re lacking the natural antibodies they are supposed to get from their mother.”

Dumpster were puppies were found

“Socialization is key when they don’t have a mom so we do our best to make sure the litter stays together and give them the proper socialization,” she added.

The puppies will be in rescue until they are eight weeks old and then will be eligible for adoption. They will also be listed on http://puppyfinder.com in the coming weeks.

Nottaway County Animal Control is actively investigating the crime. CBS 6 Legal Analyst Todd Stone said there could be possible misdemeanor and felony charges on the table.

"If the cruel treatment caused the death of the dog then it's a class 6 felony punishable to to five years in prison," said Stone. "If the dog doesn't die then it's a class one misdemeanor and it's up to 12 months."

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