They had no one and nowhere to go.
By Sarah Ashley
Published on Jan 30, 2026 at 2:56 PM
On a chilly January day in Texas, several animal control officers responded to a call about a stray dog in South San Antonio. Once they’d safely secured the dog, the officers scanned the area before heading out.
That’s when they noticed a couple of lumps of fur draped over a concrete slab. Two weak puppies looked up at them.
“They were just lying there prone,” Lisa Norwood, public relations manager at San Antonio Animal Care Services (SAACS), told The Dodo. “They weren’t moving.”
A puppy hiding in the dark underneath a slab of concrete.
San Antonio Animal Care Services
Deeply concerned, the officers carefully approached the babies — only to see four more tiny heads pop out from beneath the concrete.
“You would assume that, you know, maybe the puppies would react in some way — get scared,” Norwood said. “No, they just watched as the officers were coming up.”
San Antonio Animal Care Services
A whole litter of puppies had taken shelter in a makeshift den underneath the concrete near a drainage spillway. Curled up among debris and trash, they huddled together.
An officer reached into the darkness to ease the puppies out, trying to prevent them from crawling even deeper. Suddenly, it became clear that the officers had no idea just how many babies were hiding in the den.
Animal control officer on the ground trying to help puppies.
San Antonio Animal Care Services
In all, officers found 11 puppies that day.
“When they pulled them out, they were in relatively poor condition,” Norwood said. “They had pale gums, they were dehydrated, just fleas everywhere.”
Animal control officer holding up a puppy he just rescued.
San Antonio Animal Care Services
With no mama in sight, officers rushed all 11 pups, and the stray they’d secured earlier, to SAACS, where a vet examined and treated each baby for parasites.
“We have no idea how long these guys had been out there,” Norwood said. “We estimated they were about two months old.”
Animal control officer holding up a rescued puppy.
San Antonio Animal Care Services
Due to their vulnerable condition, SAACS reached out to a partner shelter organization, San Antonio Pets Alive (SAPA), for help. The shelter didn’t hesitate to take the babies in.
Over the past few weeks, shelter staff and a veterinary team have closely monitored the puppies’ condition.
Shelter worker holding three puppies who just arrived at the shelter.
San Antonio Pets Alive
Several of the babies tested positive for an intestinal parasite but are fighting hard to get better so they can meet potential adopters. Four are already in safe, warm foster homes, where they’re learning what it means to be loved.
Three fluffy, brown shelter puppies looking at the camera.
San Antonio Pets Alive
“They are very sweet,” SAPA told The Dodo in an email. “[They] have a lot of puppy love to give.”
A rescue puppy standing in a warm shelter.
San Antonio Pets Alive
These tiny survivors are having a blast developing their own unique personalities and cuddling together. Shelter staff said one pup in particular, Lando, simply does “whatever he wants.”
He’s earned it.
If you’re interested in adopting one of these puppies, you can fill out an application on San Antonio Pets Alive’s website.
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Daily DodoDogs
Neglected Puppy With Lion’s Mane Turns Into ‘Teddy Bear’ After Being Loved
“[She’s] a survivor with a heart of gold” 💛
By Ashley Ortiz
Last August, Romanian dog rescuer Georgiana Neagu met a fluffy puppy with a unique appearance and a heartbreaking backstory. The pup, later named Nala, technically had a home, but her parents sadly didn’t know how to care for her. Covered in flies and ravaged by a skin condition that left her completely bald, the sick pup looked up at Neagu, begging for a second chance.
Nala’s parents initially refused to relinquish her, so Neagu, of Saving Orphaned Souls Sheila’s Animal Rescue Mission (SOS ARMS), offered to visit regularly to provide treatment. But even after regular medication, Nala seemed to be getting worse.
“She could barely walk due to a serious calcium deficiency,” Neagu wrote on Facebook. “Her skin was in terrible shape. And emotionally, she was fading. I couldn’t watch her suffer any longer — I had to take her in.”