6 puppies treated for a suspected opioid overdose in Washington will find new homes soon
Six puppies in rural Washington have recovered after being treated for a suspected drug overdose, and now some might go home with the firehouse staff who saved them
SEATTLE (AP) — Six puppies in rural Washington state will soon be up for adoption after being revived after a suspected drug overdose — and some of them might go home with the fire-station staff who saved them.
Two people dropped off three of the sickened puppies at Sky Valley Fire, about an hour's drive northeast of Seattle, on Sunday. Officials believe the animals either breathed or ate fentanyl.
Firefighters sprayed the anti-overdose medication naloxone up their noses, and also treated them with oxygen and even performed CPR. It wasn't long before their tails started wagging, Battalion Chief Brandon Vargas said Tuesday.
Meanwhile, sheriff's deputies tracked down the people believed to have dropped off the dogs and found three more puppies that also needed treatment. An animal cruelty or neglect investigation is underway. The pair claimed they were caring for the puppies temporarily, authorities said.
There have been a number of other cases nationally where pets have been saved after being exposed to fentanyl or other opioids.
The puppies have a clean bill of health, but are being quarantined for about one more week before being released for adoption, said David Byrd, manager of Snohomish County Animal Services.
The Everett animal shelter that has been monitoring their health has been overwhelmed with adoption offers, and asked people to not call the shelter with questions about the puppies.
“We definitely have some personnel that are interested in wanting to adopt those," Vargas said.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO
personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who
make comments. Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. Don't threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Anyone violating these rules will be issued a
warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be
revoked.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.