Mark, who requested that his last name not be used, was walking through the streets of Sarajevo, Bosnia, when he heard a strange whimpering noise. His gaze was drawn to a cardboard box snuggled among the trees off to the side of the road.
As Mark got closer to the box, he noticed four abandoned puppies huddled together in the dirt, crying for help.
In an interview, Lisa, Mark’s wife, had this to say: “The thought of leaving them there never occurred to him.”
Lisa and Mark had quit their jobs and sold their home in 2019 to travel the world. When Mark noticed the puppies, the duo was staying in a rental apartment in Sarajevo. The Nomadic Canadians, as the couple is known, were relieved when their landlord allowed them to keep the puppies until they thought of what to do next.
Keeping up with four puppies in a small space, on the other hand, was a challenge. As Lisa explains, “Because [the puppies] woke us up every few hours, we slept in shifts. We did everything we could to keep them entertained.”
The couple knew they couldn’t bring the puppies with them on their trip, but they had no idea how to find them homes in another country.
The woman goes on, saying: “My thoughts were racing about what we were going to do next. We were heartbroken that they had been abandoned, thankful that we had found them, panicked about what to do next, joyful to spend time with them, sleep deprived, fearful and stressed that we would not find a solution, yet hopeful and focused for the next six days.”
After losing their own beloved dog, Kelso, three years ago, the couple knew they couldn’t give up on the pups.
Lisa goes on to add: “We know how much a dog can enrich a person’s life, and we adore them. How could we possibly walk away consciously?”
A local father and his two children miraculously saw the couple walking the puppies outside the apartment complex. The family, drawn to the dogs, introduced themselves, and soon they were busy locating a home for the puppies.
“We are convinced that this entire story is the result of fate,“ Lisa stated.
The couple contacted a nearby shelter named Save The Animals Now, that had plenty of room. The woman immediately relaxed once she arrived at the shelter and saw the competent, expert care that the puppies would receive.
She goes on to say: “We were ecstatic to see that the puppies would be in such capable hands. There was some crying.”
