And they call it puppy love

By TIMES STAFF
Published June 13, 2007

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Jeanette Ginnis, left, and her daughters Makayla Ginnis, 13, center, and Melina Ginnis, 16, greet nine basset hound mix puppies that were rescued Monday from an overcrowded shelter in Eufaula, Ala., by Suncoast Animal League. The girls volunteered Tuesday to help care for the dogs that were among the 21 that arrived from Alabama. Rick Chaboudy, executive director of the Suncoast Animal League in Palm Harbor, said the dogs came from a rural area where the life expectancy is only five years. "They get overcrowded with puppies like we get overcrowded with kittens, " Chaboudy said. "It's good-hearted people trying to do the best they can without any resources." Besides the three puppies at right, the shelter also took several mixed-breed puppies and a 1-year-old dachshund-chihuahua mix.