Nearly Frozen To Death After Being Abandoned, Puppy Gets A Second Chance At Life With A Police Officer

A police officer has vowed that a cruelly abandoned puppy will never freeze again after deciding to adopt the adorable pup.

46-year-old Kera Cantrell, a Daytona Beach police officer, will never forget the day she first met her puppy, River.

The tiny pup had been abandoned underneath a bridge during an unusual cold spell in Florida, during which temperatures dropped below freezing.

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"She was found wedged between two rocks. She was soaking wet," police spokesperson Lyda Longa said after River was rescued by animal control services.

Though the officers quickly did their best to warm River in the car with the heater, she was already chilled to the bone.

"She was basically freezing to death," said Barry KuKes, community outreach director for the Halifax Humane Society.

Cantrell has always loved animals, so it came as no surprise to her friends and coworkers when she decided to check on an injured dog during her lunch break on January 21.

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The police officer had reportedly picked up the dog earlier, so she wanted to make sure the injured pup was recovering well.

While staff at the Halifax Humane Society revealed that the dog Cantrell brought in had already been adopted, they asked if she wanted to meet a puppy.

For Cantrell, it was love at first sight.

"I put her to my chest," she said of meeting River. "She snuggled up to me and went to sleep."

While Cantrell cried when she heard River’s story, she knew immediately that she wanted to take the puppy home.

"I said, 'She's mine,'" Cantrell said. "I knew."

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At the time, River was still so small that she was being bottle-fed, so Cantrell was not allowed to take her home yet.

During that waiting period, Cantrell made sure to regularly check on the pup, until it was finally time to bring River home.

The moment Cantrell took River home, the tiny pup immediately fit right in with the family, especially with her other three rescue dogs: Mojo, Duck, and Goose.

Daytona Beach police spokesperson Lyda Longa urged anybody who feels like they can no longer take care of their pets not to abandon them like a piece of trash.

"If someone does not have transportation, they can still call 911 and say that they have an animal to surrender and police will assist," she said.

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As for Cantrell’s decision to take in River, Longa says the pair’s relationship is a reminder that there are still good people in the world.

"This type of compassion and dedication is the perfect example of what the department strives for on a daily basis, for two- and four-legged citizens," Longa told TODAY. "This is one of those stories that has really brought out the goodness, kindness and love that is still left in the world."

For Cantrell, however, River is the real hero in this beautiful story.

"She survived it. She's a fighter," Cantrell said of her adorable new puppy. "She's an amazing little girl."