This story began on 13th August, when we spotted a young mother dog we had never seen before searching for food in our village.

We fed her and hoped to see her again the following day so that, perhaps, she could lead us to her puppies.

But she disappeared.

Two days later, we found her again — this time on the edge of a busy road with six tiny puppies. She now had a municipality tag in her ear, which explained where she had been: she had been captured for spaying and then returned.

We knew the area was dangerous, so we tried to guide the family towards a nearby place where we believed they would be safer.

Sadly, things started going wrong almost immediately.

One of the puppies was killed by a car.

Later, their mum moved to another location with some of the puppies, leaving behind two tiny babies — a badly injured little boy and his healthy-looking sister.

We took both puppies to the vet.

The little boy had suffered much more than we could see from the outside. He had a deep puncture wound, internal injuries and a badly broken leg. The surgery he would have needed had almost no chance of success for such a tiny puppy.

Following the vet's advice, we made the heartbreaking decision to let him go peacefully.

His little sister survived.

We named her Ellie.

A few hours later, thanks to people sharing our story, we managed to find Lizzy and the rest of her puppies again.

We thought the worst was behind them.

It wasn't.

A few days later, it became clear that Ellie was not getting enough food. She was becoming smaller, weaker and was struggling to compete with her siblings.

Eventually, it seemed that Lizzy had rejected her.

We brought Ellie home.

When we first took her to the vet, she appeared healthy enough to be vaccinated. Tests later showed only a small infection and anaemia, most likely linked to not getting enough food.

With regular meals and medication, Ellie became a completely different puppy within just one day.

She is still recovering, but she is currently doing well.

And that vaccination may have saved her.

Soon afterwards, Millie — who had appeared completely healthy — suddenly became very sick.

She went from being a happy, playful puppy to weak, dehydrated and refusing food.

She was admitted to the veterinary clinic, where the vet now suspects parvovirus.

Millie is currently spending her second day at the clinic.

Then, last night, her little brother Richie also stopped eating. For now, he is still drinking, but we are extremely worried.

The last remaining puppy, Zoe, is currently still okay — but there is a real possibility that she could soon develop the same symptoms.

Right now, Millie, Richie and Zoe need help.

❤️ THIS FUNDRAISER IS FOR LIZZY'S THREE PUPPIES

The money raised will go towards:

🩺 Veterinary consultations and emergency care

🏥 Millie's stay at the veterinary clinic and any further hospitalisation needed

💊 Medication and treatment for Millie, Richie and Zoe

🧪 Tests and diagnostics

🥫 Soft and appropriate puppy food while they recover and as they are gradually weaned off their mother's milk

Lizzy herself is an officially tagged stray dog and falls under the responsibility of the local municipality.

This fundraiser is specifically for her puppies.

The authorities know about Lizzy and her puppies, but there is no animal shelter in our area and no local system able to provide ongoing care for puppies like them.

Dogs captured through the municipal programme receive basic treatment within that programme, including a rabies vaccination, but there is no support available for emergency veterinary care, hospitalisation, medication or food for sick puppies.

Local animal organisations are also overwhelmed and unable to take on more cases.

So, private individuals like me are left trying to save these little lives.

I am not a rescue organisation and I do not have funding behind me.

I simply cannot cover the growing veterinary costs, medication and food for all three puppies alone.

Every donation, no matter how small, can help provide another day of care, medication, treatment or food.

And if you cannot donate, please share their story.

❤️ Millie, Richie and Zoe deserve the chance to grow up. Please help us give them that chance.

Thank you for caring. 🐾❤️