Five malnourished huskies - including a puppy - abandoned at Virginia animal shelter

An animal shelter is looking for help after five malnourished huskies, including one puppy, were dropped off unexpectedly, according to the Virginia organization.

An animal rescue transporter brought the huskies to the shelter late July 9, after the shelter had closed for the day, according to the Norfolk SPCA Adoption Center and Veterinary Clinics.

“No advanced arrangements for this transfer had been made, and it came as a complete surprise,” the agency wrote on Facebook.

The transporter had driven for four hours bringing the dogs from North Carolina to Norfolk, according to the post. Norfolk is about 100 miles southeast of Richmond.

Staff members were called in Saturday night to help receive the dogs, Norfolk SPCA spokesman Matt Wurzburger told McClatchy News.

The dogs were underweight and looked like they’d been neglected, he said. Even though the shelter was over capacity at the time, staff members decided to take in the dogs.

Now the organization is hoping to raise $25,000 to pay for their emergency medical care, socialization training and adoption placements for the huskies, according to the agency.

Wurzburger said the huskies’ history is unclear, but staff members believe they came from a backyard breeding operation. Their ages are also unknown, but veterinarians will have a better picture once their physical examinations are done.

All of the dogs tested positive for heartworm, hookworm and whipworm, a kind of intestinal parasite, he said.

It will be “at least several weeks” before the dogs are ready for adoption, he said.

This story was originally published July 14, 2022 at 3:32 PM with the headline "Five malnourished huskies - including a puppy - abandoned at Virginia animal shelter."