17 puppies dumped along road headed to new homes

VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) — All of the 17 puppies dumped Friday night along State Park Road in Porter have families lined up to adopt them.

And the dog assumed to be the mother of about half of those puppies is safe in a foster home, according to Jeanne Sommer, co-founder and director of Lakeshore PAWS.

The Labrador mix puppies, which appear to be from two litters, were abandoned in a wooded area near the Indiana Dunes State Park. A Porter woman who found them said a gold SUV sped off when she approached late Friday night. The puppies were taken to the Porter County Animal Shelter and later taken by Lakeshore PAWS to find homes for them.

Sommer told The Times (http://bit.ly/YM5oqW ) Wednesday that Lakeshore PAWS received more than 70 applications this week to adopt the 17 puppies. Each puppy has been assigned to a family, she said. The puppies will be spayed or neutered, thanks to a donation from Jacki Stutzman, Sommer said. The puppies should be with their new families Tuesday.

Maura Myers is providing the foster home for the mother dog, which was captured Monday in a live trap. Sommer said the mother is underweight and wary of new people after the ordeal but is expected to be OK.

She eventually will be put up for adoption.

Lakeshore PAWS originally had planned to have the puppies available for adoption the organization's second anniversary party, noon to 3 p.m. at Coco's Canine Cabana, 405 Elm St., Valparaiso.

"They'll be there, but they're all spoken for," Sommer said.

But Lakeshore PAWS said more than 30 other dogs, including some puppies, and cats will be at Saturday's event and still need a home.

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Information from: The Times, http://www.thetimesonline.com