Watch CBS News

Puppies Buried Alive In N. Dakota Now Recovering In Minn.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- After nearly being buried alive at a North Dakota construction site, nine puppies will hopefully find good homes in Minnesota.

Police in Tioga, N. D., confirmed that a man tried to bury the nine puppies last Saturday. After someone there became aware of what was going on, they quickly went searching for the puppies and uncovered them.

The person who found the small dogs then contacted a local dog rescuer, who contacted Prairie Paws in Jamestown, N.D. That shelter notified Tioga Police. Investigators in Tioga said the case has been turned over to the Divide County Sheriff's Office.

Puppies Buried Alive In N. Dakota Now Recovering In Minn.

Staff at Prairie Paws said they didn't have enough volunteers to care for the little dogs, which are less than a week old; so they put the word out on Facebook. All nine were then driven overnight to three separate shelters in the Twin Cities.

"There was a lot of commitment from a lot of different people to get these puppies to safe appropriate and committed families to foster them," said Ashley Kurtz, founder of Coco's Heart Dog Rescue.

Kurtz says that in the dog rescue world this kind of cruelty is common.

"We see a lot of heart breaking stories like this on a daily basis," Kurtz said.

Three puppies are now at Happy Tails Rescue in Maple Grove, two went to RPAW in Anoka, and the remaining four are at Coco's Heart Dog Rescue in Stillwater.

It will be several weeks before the dogs will available for adoption.

It's also too soon to tell what kind of dog the puppies are.

Puppy
(credit: CBS)
View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.