Puppies on the highway...What to do?

Last month Nupur and I went to a wedding, an hour from Pune. It was a beautiful two-day event with lots of laughter, celebration, and dancing. I’ve realised that such moments are so important for me in life. They help to ‘switch off’ from dog work which can be ever so emotionally draining. But as much as I like the idea of switching off, I really can’t. Ever. On our way back to Pune, we came across two tiny puppies running scared in the middle of the road. I stopped the car to the side. The pups looked confused as I called them. They went straight under my car, with their tails tucked in. I had so many questions. What are they running away from? How are they here in the first place? What do I do now - whether to intervene or not? In my experience, it looked like the pups were abandoned there, away from their mother. We waited for a while to see if there was any sign of an adult dog, but given the scene of the road, it looked unlikely. Their body language also suggested that they were not running or playing, as pups would around their mother. They were scared, and clearly lost. They looked less than a month old. Together. After a few minutes, they came out from under the car and wagged their tails, licked my palms, and did two small happy jumps. They were not scared of humans. In fact, they trusted humans.

I came to the conclusion that they were definitely abandoned by some humans whom they trusted. Why? I don’t know. Maybe because they were female pups? As sad as this sounds, it is a reality. But I will never find out why. Now, the next question. Should I intervene? Given the young age and situation, leaving them there is almost certain death. Perhaps under a fast moving vehicle, or from starvation. There were too many horrible scenarios running in my head. On the other hand, if I do intervene - what does that look like? They would first need a vet check up, followed by a foster until adoption. This choice would keep the pups alive, but it sounded scarier than the first one. The adoption of female Indie pups is extremely challenging. Maybe it is a reflection of the society we live in, and the values we have. Secondly, there are two of them. One is hard enough. Getting two pups adopted? Ooof. Thirdly, they seemed to have a good bond. So ideally, they should live together. So if one gets adopted, what happens to the other one? There were more such questions. Doubts. Fears. The last option explored was also to settle them on the hill, where other pet parents can feed and care for them on their walks. The community will look after them. Maybe the adult dogs on the hill will help too. But this option has so many uncertainties, and is also equally scary. I remember getting calls frequently from people who need help with adoption. They have picked up a puppy on the highway and now are looking for a home with no luck. I always asked, “Why did you pick up the pup? And now I find myself in a similar spot. How could I leave them there? What would that say about me? A person who knows two pups would die a horrible death, and just walk away? I don’t believe I could live with myself that way. So in that split moment, we decided to intervene. We took the pups in our car. We were quite close to Pune, so it wasn’t a long journey back home. However, within a few minutes, the pups passed out in Nupur’s lap. I wondered how long has it been since they last afforded to close their eyes in safety? We reached home, much to the annoyance of our dog, Titli. She was, mildly put, extremely unhappy. Yet, she was curious at the same time. Titli did not have any siblings, so she doesn’t have any experience with tiny pups. A curious, slightly confused, but mostly unhappy dog was an interesting combination to witness. We realised we couldn’t foster them.

The following day we took them to a vet. They were overall in good health but were probably full of worms and famished. So we knew that some food, and TLC would be greatly beneficial. Thankfully, we found a very loving foster, where they continue to live.

It has been 3 weeks now. The pups, now named Kaju and Amsul, are growing very well. However, with every passing day, my stress about their future increases. I have taken them to the hill twice to get them familiar with the environment, in case it comes to that. However, they are way too small right now for life on the hill without any strong bonds with adult dogs or humans.

Update (7th May 2026) - The pups have been adopted! Both of them found a lovely family near Nashik and are growing well.