A few months ago, Dellymar Bernal was driving down a rural road in Lajas, Puerto Rico, on her way to a doctorâs appointment, when a shocking discovery led to a sudden change of plans.
It all started when Bernal stopped at an intersection and casually looked out her window, only to find herself face-to-face with a litter of 10 abandoned puppies.
Bernal was stunned. As executive director of Santuario de Animales San Francisco de AsĂs (SASFAPR), she was used to saving stray dogs. So much so, that the shelter was filled at the time of the discovery.
Bernal wasnât prepared to rescue 10 puppies that day, and there was hardly any room at the shelter to receive them if she had been. But she refused to drive off without them.
âI couldnât leave them there,â Bernal told The Dodo.
Without skipping a beat, Bernal parked her car and approached the dogs. One of the pups, a tan girl later named Luna, barked at Bernal as if pleading for help, while her siblings stumbled over the buckets of food left with them.
âThe dog who was barking and wagging her tail, honestly, she stole my heart with her pure face. When I saw them, I was in shock,â Bernal said. âI opened the door and they all came to greet me. They were all wagging their tails, happy to see me âŚâ
The puppiesâ friendly dispositions confirmed Bernalâs worst fears: They once had a family who abandoned them.
âAt some point, they had a home. I know they were abandoned because itâs a really isolated area,â Bernal said. âWhen we posted about them, the neighbors commented that they had been abandoned and had spent a few days there.â
You can watch Bernal rescue the puppies here:
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