Four newborn puppies found abandoned in box along Maryland walking trail

Four newborn puppies were found abandoned in a box along a walking trail in Harford County early Saturday morning, according to the Humane Society of Harford County (HSHC). While all the puppies ultimately received care, only three of the four puppies survived.

A passerby discovered the puppies in a box off Route 7 and Creswell Road in Belcamp, near the Riverside Apartments on Oct.18, when morning temperatures were in the low 50s, the organization said. 

The HSHC described the puppies as "only a day or two old and completely defenseless."

Without their mother or human intervention, the puppies had no chance of survival on their own, the organization said.

The person who found the puppies rushed them to the Humane Society, where staff immediately administered care and warmed the pups in an incubator. A team member took the litter home overnight and bottle-fed them every couple of hours.

By Sunday, one of the puppies, the smallest of the litter, passed away, the HSHC said. The three remaining puppies are stable and thriving in their foster home.

"Newborn puppies like these need their mother," Amanda Hickman, executive director at HSHC, said in a statement. "We're so grateful that someone found them when they did. Just a few more hours in the cold could have been tragic."

She added that there are always humane alternatives to abandonment.

"If you find yourself with a litter you can't care for, please call us," said Hickman. "We're here to help, with no judgement and no shaming. We have a pet food pantry, we have affordable vaccine clinics, we have resources, so no pet parent should feel their only choice is abandonment," Hickman said.

To explore the foster program or to contribute to the care of these puppies and others like them, you can visit the HSHC website.