One day in a forest stream in rural Tennessee, USA, small creatures were struggling to breathe in this remote place. A mother dog gave birth to as many as 12 puppies and was holding on to the children in her arms without anyone’s help. Without food or shelter, she was alone with all the responsibilities.

Upon hearing this, local rescue activist Sarah Kordard immediately headed to the scene. “I was so upset and angry that it was news of another abandoned dog,” Kodad told, a media outlet specializing in rescue. Kodard was a long-time activist who had worked hard to rescue animals, and he knew better than anyone that dogs were devoted to them like family. “It’s really ridiculous that such loyal beings are abandoned. This is literally abuse.”

The coded searched the bushes, tracking the movements of the mother dog. When I finally found the children, one had already passed away. She carefully put the remaining 11 puppies and mother dog in a vehicle and moved them to a place where they could be protected. She was then connected to a local foster family through the nonprofit animal rescue organization Rubies and Rogues, who were willing to welcome these small, precious lives.

Currently, the mother dog and puppies are living comfortably in foster homes, and after regaining their health, they will find their own lifelong families. Sarah Kordard wrote on her Facebook page: “I don’t have to worry about the baby anymore, I won’t have to worry about it anymore, and I won’t have to worry about survival anymore.”

This story has received a lot of local reactions. “Mom’s dog is really amazing… It makes my heart ache” to comments saying, “Rescuers like Sarah are real heroes,” and some people faced the reality, saying, “Every time I see a story like this, I feel the seriousness of the abandoned animal problem anew.”

This sad story that began with someone’s neglect turned into hope by someone else’s warm touch. And that change was enough to make more people pay attention to abandoned animals again.