Humane Society puppies test out new home

Dogs rescued in animal cruelty case find new home

FOX 13's Kylie Jones shares how the two surviving dogs are testing out a new home with a new family.

TAMPA - Two puppies who were originally surrendered to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay and believed to be abandoned, are testing out a new home.

After being put up for adoption, Spirit and Hope are now on a 'test drive' with a new family.

The backstory:

The Humane Society of Tampa Bay says about two weeks ago, Spirit, Hope and Blessing, who was believed to be their mother, were surrendered.

The shelter says the woman who brought them in claimed that she found them behind a gas station in Lutz.

However, Animal Control investigated and discovered the dogs came from a home in extremely poor and deplorable conditions.

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What they're saying:

"They were living in horrible conditions, underneath the trailer," Ben Moehnert, the Senior Medical Supervisor with the Humane Society of Tampa Bay said. They were emaciated, had parasites, she had parvo. She was also heartworm positive."

After further investigation, Carla Sanchez Diaz who surrendered the dogs, was charged with multiple counts of animal cruelty and booked into the Orient Rd. Jail.

The Humane Society says Blessing didn't survive, but Spirit and Hope recovered and were put up for adoption.

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Michelle, who lives in Tampa Bay, went to the shelter on Saturday with her sights set on a different dog.

"I thought, 'Oh, Saturday's going to be a tricky day because Hope and Spirit are there, and they're up for adoption, and it's going to be a zoo'," Michelle said. "'There's going be a hundred people in line waiting to see them and adopt them'."

When she got there, she learned that the dog she was originally interested in had already been adopted. She was surprised to learn that nobody was there to see Spirit and Hope.

"And I couldn't believe no one was outside their little crate," Michelle said.

As a dog lover, the pair's story stole Michelle's heart.

"I thought, 'We have nothing but love to give. We have time. Why would we leave you here and let you sit?'" she said.

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Spirit and Hope are now on a two-week test-drive period with Michelle and her husband.

"So, it's sort of a foster for two weeks to make sure that they do well in that home with the family, if there's other pets," Moehnert said.

Although the pair is only on day two fo the test-drive, Michelle says they've been doing well so far.

"Never in a million years did I think I was coming home with two puppies," she said. "Yeah, it was two or none. I was not going to separate them."

She hopes this story will encourage other people to consider fostering and adoption if they're able to.

"However the cookie crumbles, we'll have to go from there," Michelle said. "But I want them to feel like they had a perfect start."

What's next:

The Humane Society says two additional dogs have since been rescued from the same home. Staff believe they're also about a year old.

The two dogs, Grace and Angel, are now up for adoption.

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