A lone mother dog risked everything to protect her pups. With temperatures below zero and heavy snowfall, Hera feared for her infants’ survival, so she put her trust in strangers, believing they’d be compassionate and save her and her puppies. A Happy Ending for Hera!

In a sewage pipe near a village in Serbia, Hera gave birth to three puppies. There was no shelter from the wind, yet the devoted mother found scratching nearby to feed herself. But then came winter, and Hera and her babies had to go. But she had no option.

When the puppies and their mother seemed doomed, the odds shifted in their favor. Milan from Mladenovac Dog Rescue Shelter saved them after a concerned resident called him.

Hera was overjoyed to see Milan and ran out the pipe to greet him and tell him about her poor infants. The puppies were about 4-weeks old and in great form, but rescuing them proved far more complex than planned.

Even with their mother comforting them, the puppies had never been near a human before, making them difficult to reach. But Milan didn’t go all that way just to abandon them. He spent hours in the cold trying to get them out with a broom.

Milan rescued the three puppies and reunited them with their mother, waiting inside the VAN. It’s allowing strangers’ kindness and bravery that Hera and her baby are now safe and comfortable.