Puppies revived after possible fentanyl exposure in Gold Bar, WA

Puppies saved from fentanyl exposure in Gold Bar, WA

Six puppies were rescued in Gold Bar after deputies said they were possibly exposed to fentanyl and nearly died.

GOLD BAR, Wash. - Six puppies were rescued Sunday in Gold Bar after what deputies said was a possible exposure to fentanyl.

Fire crews said it took nearly an hour to revive the puppies, who were not moving and barely breathing.

The backstory:

Sky Valley Fire crews say two people showed up to their front door on Sunday with the puppies in their arms, completely unresponsive.

"We were worried we weren’t going to be able to save the initial three," said Brandon Vargas, Battalion Chief of Sky Valley Fire.

Vargas says when two people drove up unannounced Sunday, they were surprised they were asking for medical help for these non-human patients.

"Had them in their arms and gave them to us these three unresponsive dogs," said Vargas.

He says the puppies were barely breathing and appeared to be suffering from an overdose, so they grabbed their medical kit.

"You give them the Narcan in the nose and we ended up having to give two of them a shot as well," said Vargas.

The drug fentanyl can come in the form of a powder or pill, and it can shut down an animal's system to the point of death, just like a human.

"The first three were definitely the worst, so we gave around three to four rounds of Narcan per dog," said Vargas.

He says after they gave them a dose, a few minutes later, the puppies would start to go downhill, so they'd give them another dose. The crews had to give one of the puppies CPR.

"So we were here treating them probably for about an hour," said Vargas.   

After it appeared the dogs were revived, the people who brought them in took off, based on the vehicle description, and deputies found them.

"Went to the house and ended up finding three more puppies that had been exposed. Only one of those dogs needed to had to have Narcan," said Vargas. 

 While the sheriff's office investigates, the fire crew has since fallen in love with their former patients and some are considering adopting them.

"We are hopeful that at least some of them will come and be family members," said Vargas.

What's next:

The heart-warming pile of puppies is drinking it all in after the whirlwind rescue. As of Monday, the puppies were at the Everett Animal Shelter. They will eventually be up for adoption.

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