Every day, the team at Pups Without Borders, a rescue group based in Los Angeles, responds to animals in urgent need. Just when they think they’ve seen everything, another call proves them wrong — like the recent discovery of nine severely underweight puppies living inside an abandoned car.
Rescuers don’t know much about how the puppies ended up there. They suspect the dogs once belonged to an unhoused couple who, unable to care for them, eventually left them behind. Whatever the circumstances, one thing was clear: the puppies wouldn’t survive much longer on their own.
When CEO Eve Bañuelos first heard about them, she was devastated. At first, she worried there was no way to help — the rescue was already stretched beyond capacity. But after thinking it over, she reached out to her team. Their response was immediate.
“We talked it through and decided we’d help as many puppies as we could place in foster homes,” Bañuelos said. “That was our way of saying we can step in — but we need support too.”
They turned to Facebook, asking the community for help. Within a short time, foster families stepped up for five of the puppies. When no one else came forward for the rest, the rescue made the call to take them in anyway.
The puppies were given medical attention and slowly began adjusting to their new environments. Though still settling in, their transformation is already clear.
“They’re doing so much better — they’re no longer dangerously thin,” Bañuelos said. “And they’re starting to come out of their shells. Honestly, they look like completely different dogs.”
Now safe and surrounded by care, the puppies are finally getting the chance they deserve.
Bañuelos hopes their story inspires others to step up for animals in need. Whether through adoption, fostering, volunteering, or donating, even small actions can change lives.
“I just wish more people cared,” she said. “There are so many animal lovers out there. If more people supported rescues, it could truly change everything.”
