By Becky Oskin, Senior Writer
Firefighters rescued five wolf pups from an abandoned den Tuesday (March 27) as they battled the massive Funny Rive Fire in southern Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The pups had not been hurt by the blaze, according to a Facebook post by firefighters with the Kenai Wildlife National Refuge, who discovered the den.
Medics with the fire crew fed the fuzzy brown puppies glucose (sugar water) and plucked porcupine quills from their skin. In reward, they got some excited licks from the tiny pups. With help from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the litter was taken to Anchorage, where they await a permanent home.
The Funny River Fire has burned through more than 183,000 acres and is 30 percent contained, according to the Alaska Division of Forestry. State officials have told the news media that the fire was probably caused by a campfire that was not properly extinguished.