Chery Legg heard “whining, squealing and squeaking” sounds as she walked in Boardwalk Park next to Lake Windsor on Monday.
With her was her son, Quin, 5, and her mother, Annabel Suppes.
“We thought there was a baby somewhere,” Legg recalled Thursday.
As they looked around, they spotted a trash barrel filled with really gross garbage, and they decided the sounds must be coming from there.
As they dug through the layers of trash, they discovered a plastic, white grocery sack that had been tied at the top.
Inside were two newborn puppies, not more than 12 hours old.
“They were cold to the touch,” said Legg.
Suppes wrapped them in her coat, and together, the family rushed the puppies to Mountainwood Pet Hospital in Windsor.
There, the puppies were immediately warmed and fed.
Stacie Stocks, the practice manager for Mountainwood, said there was disciplined chaos at the hospital when the puppies were brought in because the hospital already was dealing with several other emergencies.
Hot pads and blankets were immediately placed around the puppies, who weighed just a few ounces. Goat milk and other liquids were fed to the newborns.
The Leggs and Suppes stayed with the puppies for hours and then took them home the first night, where they fed them every two hours around the clock.
“These guys had a rough start,” Stocks said today of the two female puppies.
The puppies were transferred to the Animal Rescue Connection in Greeley, where they are doing well and continue to receive round-the-clock care.
They may be ready for adoption in eight to 10 weeks.
Their care is being paid for through a fund called Stray Animals in Need of Treatment (SAINTS). To donate to the fund, call the animal hospital at 970-686-5725.
Quin Legg named the puppies. The white one is Pearl; the darker one is Cupcake. Chery Legg said he wanted to keep the puppies, but they already have a dog and cat.
Rose Carroll, a co-founder of Animal Rescue Connection, said the puppies are doing very well. They still haven’t opened their eyes, but that won’t happen for several more days, she said.
She has placed them with four kittens she also is caring for. She said the pups have perked up as they’ve socialized with their small feline friends.
“They have snuggled” with the kittens, Carroll said.
Both Legg and Carroll said that the circumstances of the abandonment are disheartening.
It is the first case of puppy abandonment Carroll has experienced in her years of helping animals.
“It is very sad,” said Carroll. “There are alternatives to abandoning animals.”
“It was very disturbing. It is still disturbing,” Legg said today.
The Windsor Police Department hopes to find whoever discarded the pups in an effort to build an animal-cruelty case against them.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
