For a police officer in Novo Horizonte, Brazil, the morning of Tuesday, January 31 started out like any other. He was about to drive his kid to school when he observed a dog in the neighborhood going among the garbage.
The officer initially thought the dog had discovered a dead cat, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that it was a tiny newborn puppy that was still alive.
He tried to take the puppy away from the dog, but she barked angrily, so the officer let her keep an eye on it while he called for help. He reached out to Marco Antonio Rodrigues, a local pet sitter and animal rescuer, who gladly accepted the puppy, dubbing it Charlie Chaplin after the actor’s small black mustache.
Rodrigues started a Facebook campaign right once to find a nursing mommy dog who would accept the abandoned puppy as her own. Lupi, a Chihuahua mix who lived across town, had just given birth to Charlie a few days before he was discovered. Her owners offered to assist provided Lupi agreed to take the dog.
Lupi, fortunately, took to the sad little orphan right away. Charlie has begun to regain his strength and thrive as an adoptive member of Lupi’s litter, thanks to a combination of fresh milk and antibiotics!
The person who abandoned the helpless puppy like rubbish has not been apprehended, but the wonderful compassion displayed by the two dogs who saved him much outweighs his or her heartless indifference.
He would never have had a chance if it hadn’t been for one dog finding him and the other adopting him as her own. Another example of a dog’s incredible capacity for empathy!
*NOTE: Although we don’t know the name of the dog who found Charlie, she is owned and her family and community have lauded her as a hero – much like Lupi!