Danny Is Dogs' Best Friend And Lifesaver

Beauty Health A teen aiming to be a policeman may have a career as a police dog handler after saving five pups dumped in a Te Puke stream.

Danny Steer, 17, has been credited with saving the lives of at least two of the blue heeler-cross puppies, which he found yelping in Ohineangaanga Stream in the Bay of Plenty town on Monday.

The Te Puke High School year 12 pupil had finished a five-hour shift at Bayliss Packhouse just after 11pm when he heard the dogs.

"I ran over and saw these three puppies half out of the water," he said. "I pulled them out and put them on the grass and then saw two more trying to climb out."

Danny grabbed the two pups, which were "really frightened, and shivering because they were cold and wet".

He rang police, who arrived 40 minutes later and put the pups into a box to take to the SPCA.

"I was a bit worried about ringing the police because I didn't know if it was a real emergency."

He was not sure how long the two- to three-month-old pups had been in the water.

"I walked past the stream on the way to work around 5pm and they weren't there then, so whoever dumped them must have done it between 6 and 11pm.

"It's absolutely terrible for someone to do that to animals. Beauty Health It's really sad that they want to get rid of pups like that."

Danny said he would like to keep one of the pups, but that might be a problem.

"I have two cats so it may not work out and I live with my parents in a rented house, so the landlord might not approve."

The pups will be put up for adoption by the Tauranga SPCA if the owner has not claimed them within seven days.

Tauranga SPCA centre manager Matt Franklin said the pups were in reasonable health, though one had an injured hind leg.

"Danny did well to save them. Two of the pups in the water would have come a bit unstuck. He obviously cares for animals," Mr Franklin said, adding that the SPCA had clues to who the owner was. "It's a serious offence under the Animal Welfare Act to abandon animals and carries a fine of $25,000 or six months' jail."