11-week-old puppy severely burned by boiling water dies after intense rescue

Named Elsie by her rescuers, the puppy succumbed to her injuries Saturday morning. (SOURCE: WANF)
Published: Feb. 19, 2024 at 6:34 PM EST|Updated: Feb. 21, 2024 at 8:19 PM EST

ATLANTA, GA (WANF/Gray News) - An 11-week-old puppy severely burned by boiling water died from her injuries in Georgia Saturday morning.

The puppy, named Elsie by her rescuers, was covered with burns over her entire body. According to Jackie Spett, Director of Development and Marketing for Angels Among Us Pet Rescue, the puppy had either been placed in or had boiling water spilled all over her, Atlanta News First reports.

“The really tough part was that the owners kept her for a week,” Spett said.

When the owners finally took Elsie to the animal hospital, the staff quickly went into action to save the fur baby.

In a Facebook post, the Angels Among Us Pet Rescue described the incident, including photos of the puppy in a pink full-body cast and wounds. That’s when Elsie’s story exploded and tugged at the heartstrings of thousands of people who started following her journey. The post garnered over 1.9k reactions, 808 comments and 702 shares.

“We want to give them a fighting chance,” Spett said.

And that’s what Elsie did, she fought.

“I was holding her, and she started kissing me, and it just kind of felt like she was a normal puppy,” Spett said.

On Friday, it seemed as though she was responding well to the efforts finally. Unfortunately by Saturday, she became septic and couldn’t fight anymore.

“Waking up to the news was a huge disappointment, but I didn’t have time to mourn,” Spett said. “There’s going to be the next one and the next one and the next one.”

Animal Control currently is looking into Elsie’s case.

Copyright 2024 WANF via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.