The Mercury News

A stolen slice of pizza leads sleuths to homeless puppies

An East Palo Alto tale of a swiped slice of pizza and six rescued puppies

- By Patrick May pmay@bayareanew­sgroup.com Contact Patrick May at 408-9205689.

From the you-can’t-make-this-stuffup department we have a tale of a peaceful picnic, a pilfered pizza and a pile of perky puppies.

It all started a few weeks ago when a group of friends in East Palo Alto sat down for a pizza lunch. A four-legged stranger, apparently, decided to join them.

“We received a call from a concerned person in East Palo Alto who reported a stray dog stealing a piece of pepperoni pizza he and his friends were enjoying on their lunch break,” said Buffy Martin Tarbox, a spokeswoma­n for the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA.

“When our rescue staff arrived on scene the hungry little dog led us to her small nest of six tiny one week old puppies.”

The rescuers scooped up the nursing mother and her six puppies and brought them back to the safety of their shelter in San Mateo. The mother was not microchipp­ed, nor did anyone come forward to claim her. So staffers found a temporary foster home with Jenn Walsh for the mom and her six fragile babies

“This poor little dog was struggling to survive on her own, eating whatever scraps of food she could find and trying to take care of her babies,” said Tarbox. “Her puppies have been weaned and are now all available for adoption at our shelter in Burlingame.”

The mom’s name, however, was reserved for the most royal of all: Queen Elizabeth.

Anyone interested in meeting the mom and the puppies can visit the center at 1450 Rollins Road, Burlingame or call at 650-340-7022. The shelter is open for adoptions 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends. Potential adopters should arrive at least an hour before closing time to complete an adoption.

 ?? PHOTOS COURTESY PENINSULA HUMANE SOCIETY — SPCA ?? Jenn Walsh, a house pet temporary foster mom for the Peninsula Humane Society/SPCA, holds six puppies born to a stray who had stolen a slice of pepperoni pizza from a party of friends eating together a few weeks ago in East Palo Alto.
PHOTOS COURTESY PENINSULA HUMANE SOCIETY — SPCA Jenn Walsh, a house pet temporary foster mom for the Peninsula Humane Society/SPCA, holds six puppies born to a stray who had stolen a slice of pepperoni pizza from a party of friends eating together a few weeks ago in East Palo Alto.
 ??  ?? “Queen Elizabeth”is pictured at the Peninsula Humane Society/SPCA, with her six puppies. The Peninsula Humane Society/SPCA was notified and staff members rescued the mother dog and her pups.
“Queen Elizabeth”is pictured at the Peninsula Humane Society/SPCA, with her six puppies. The Peninsula Humane Society/SPCA was notified and staff members rescued the mother dog and her pups.

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