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HAPPY ENDINGS Medford pit bull reunited with her puppies Comment By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 11, 2015 at 9:59 AM Updated Aug 11, 2015 at 10:00 AM By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 11, 2015 at 9:59 AM Updated Aug 11, 2015 at 10:00 AM » Social News Being ambushed by six wrinkly puppies was far from the scenario Medford dog lover Kelly Cole imagined when she first noticed an exhausted white pit bull named Sadie running along the Bear Creek Greenway under smoky skies last week. With blistered paws and engorged milk glands, the 1-year-old dog was being led by a homeless man in scorching temperatures and in obvious need of food, water and medical attention. Thanks to social media, Cole was able to reunite the exhausted pooch with her litter of hungry puppies, and all seven canines are doing well and about to be adopted. "I was driving home from work and saw this dog running with this homeless guy," Cole said. "I could tell the dog had just given birth. She was struggling to keep up. I told him I would take the dog and help it find a good home. He said, 'She's yours if you want her.' "I knew I couldn't keep her, but I just wanted to get her to someplace safe and was hoping to find out what happened to her puppies so I could make sure they were OK." Cole took Sadie to All Creatures Animal Hospital in Eagle Point, which examined the dog for free, then headed home. Cole posted on Facebook that she was looking for advice to ease the dog's sore paws and for help in finding an adoptive home. While Cole was sharing the dog's story online, Medford resident Irina Howard was at home in west Medford, worried about her missing dog and the six pups left behind when her friend, Nicole Chandler, saw a photo Cole posted of Sadie. Unbeknownst to Howard, a neighborhood transient, the same man Cole encountered on the Greenway, had taken Sadie, claiming she looked like a dog he owned in the past. Howard, who was fostering the dog when it went missing, thought Sadie had simply run away. She planned to drive around looking for the dog Wednesday when Cole's post and photos of Sadie appeared online. On Thursday, all were reunited at Howard's house. While the women marveled at Sadie's tumultuous past, the mother pit bull rested her sore paws and fed her chubby babies: Tank, Gemma, Oscar the Grouch, Maya, Phillip and Jazzy. Howard said she hoped to hang on to the puppies for a few more days, to properly say goodbye, before they all head to their adoptive homes. Sadie and one puppy will be adopted by a resident who volunteers at the recovery housing where Sadie's former owner once lived.  "They were born 66 days after she came to live with me, and she was reunited with them on her first birthday," Howard said, scratching behind Sadie's ears and smiling at a trio of sleeping puppies tucked behind their mother's back. "This whole thing ended up helping them all find good homes, which is what we wanted. It's like, in just a year, she's come full circle, and now she'll have a really good life," Howard said. "This dog has really been through it. She lived for four months with drug users, then got left with a neighbor who left her in a backyard, probably to be bred, was locked in a kennel and was without a family to love her. She had her puppies when she was still a puppy, and after all she's been through, she's still the sweetest dog. She really deserves to finally be getting her happy ending." Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. Email her at [email protected]. By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 11, 2015 at 9:59 AM Updated Aug 11, 2015 at 10:00 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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