One of Seven Dumped Puppies Has Died

One of the seven newborn dumped puppies has died, a spokesman for the Riverside County Department of Animal Services announced Thursday morning.

The puppy is survived by six of the dumped puppies. They are reported to be thriving.

“The very kind foster volunteer contacted us last night and shared the bad news,” John Welsh, Animal Services Chief/Media Relations & Social Media Strategist, said in a news release. She said she believes the runt of litter just could not make a comeback. She said the little one might have been on the bottom of the bag when the woman dumped the puppies into a trash bin and, possibly, just never recovered from that traumatic moment.”

Meanwhile, the 38 dogs  impounded from the suspect’s home on Monday night are continuing to be cared for by the veterinary team & animal care technicians at the Department’s Coachella Valley Animal Campus in Thousand Palms. All 38 received thorough examinations by one of the Department’s staff veterinarians and no serious ailments were reported, Welsh said.

There is no clear way to determine hat dog may be the mother of the dumped puppies, Welsh said. Several female dogs among the 38 impounded appear to have had recent litters.

Here is a look at the six surviving and thriving of the dumped puppies. The video is courtesy of the foster volunteer Noni Boen Schirm.

Commander Chris Mayer attempted to make contact with Deborah Sue Culwell, 54, the owner of the 38 dogs on Wednesday afternoon. She was not home. A family member told Commander Mayer that she would not be speaking with him, Welsh said. The dogs remain in protective custody. Culwell of Coachella has 10 days to request a hearing.

Every day the 38 dogs remain in the care of Riverside County Animal Services, Culwell is facing $570 in board and care fees. These daily fees do not include the cost of vaccinations, examination fees, medications, nor state-mandated fees, according to Welsh. In short, Culwell is still the legal owner of the 38 dogs until she relinquishes ownership.

Once the 10-day period hold expires, Animal Services can legally coordinate a disposition for the 38 dogs by way of adoption or transfer to one of the many rescue partners in Animal Services’ network of nonprofit organizations.

Culwell faces seven counts each of animal cruelty and animal abandonment. She released from a Riverside County jail after posting $10,000 bail on April 23.

She was arrested at her Coachella home April 22 after officials identified her as the woman caught on video throwing a plastic bag containing seven 3-day-old puppies into a trash bin outside a nearby business.

Culwell is scheduled  to appear in court in Indio on June 18, according to jail records.