Mom Sees Trash Bag Moving, Runs Back To Car After Opening It

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It Was Squirming

It was an unnerving sight. The bag was moving, squirming, and slowly inching its way down the road.  Lizzie slowed her car down. She was worried. She wondered if her fever was causing her to have hallucinations.

The car was still moving when she got close enough. She was started when she realized it wasn’t a hallucination. There was something in the bag that was clearly moving.

Getting Away

Pexels – Andrea – Piacquadio

As Lizzie reached the road that day, she found herself feeling deeply relieved to be away from the bustle of her office. The drive was helping her feel a little better.

Despite her illness, she had worked that entire week without a break. As she left the office now, she was looking forward to some much-needed rest. Instead, she ended up stumbling upon a terrifying experience.

Happy Family

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Lizzie Happy had heard many jokes about her second name. She loved it and as a thirty-five-year-old mom from Denver, Colorado, she tried to live up to her name each day. Of course, being a single mom of two beautiful daughters, this was no easy feat.

Lizzie and her girls lived a quiet and relatively uneventful life. She worked as a librarian and the family mostly kept to themselves. It was therefore a little jarring when they were suddenly thrust into the spotlight.

Not In The Script

Pexels – Cottonbro

Lizzie had been at her job for over ten years before that fateful day. In all that time, she had never experienced anything out of the ordinary. Her job, like her home life, was pretty calm and even boring at times.

That week seemed to already indicate that things weren’t going to go according to plan this time. It started when Lizzie fell ill at the beginning of the week. She was soon struggling.

Carved From Steel

Pexels – Andrea Piacquadio

Life as a single mom had turned Lizzie into a superhuman. Between work and all the chores she managed by herself, somehow found a way to get to everything without complaint.

Even while feeling under the weather, there was no stopping as she got the kids bathed, fed, and off to school that morning. It was then time for work. Reaching her office, Lizzie’s day immediately began going downhill from there.

She Needed Rest

Pexels – Andrea – Piacquadio

Lizzie had been feeling ill all week but now her fever was starting to make her feel delirious. This was in addition to her cough and sore throat which were getting worse. Her boss soon intervened and told her to go home and rest.

Lizzie eventually took him up on the offer. After midday, she gratefully got her things ready and left work but had no idea what the drive home had in store for her.

Going Home

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She was tired and groggy as she drove away. The drive home was a lengthy one and she couldn’t wait to reach home. Traffic caused her to take a different route than usual.

The new route was thankfully clearer but more isolated. Once she reached the backroads, her path ahead cleared and she was now alone en route for miles ahead. That was when she first noticed something peculiar.

The Trash Bag

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From afar, all Lizzie could see was that it was something black. As she got closer, she realized it appeared to be a trash bag. She became annoyed at the thought that someone had thrown thrash onto the road.

She slowed down as she approached it. She couldn’t tell how large its contents were and did not want to mistakenly clip it with her car. Getting closer, she began feeling a little worried

A Weird Sight

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Lizzie became confused when she got closer and realized that the bag appeared to be moving across the road. Due to her fever, she worried that she might be seeing things.

Lizzie slowed her car even more instinctively As she approached, she realized it really was moving. Panic began to flood her as she had no idea what could be inside it.

It Was Creepy

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The closer she got, the more intimidating, strange, and creepy the sight of the bag grew. Now it was squirming all over the place and shimmying around the road.

Lizzie’s first instinct was to take out her phone so she could record the incident in case she needed any proof of what she was seeing. One part of her wanted to get out and see what it was but another part stayed rooted in her car seat out of fear.

Stepping Up

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A minute passed, and Lizzie knew she couldn’t stay in the car anymore. She threw her door open with her phone recording and carefully took her steps toward the moving trash bag.

Out of the car, she could hear growls and snarls emanating from the black polythene bag. At first, she was scared, but then the snarls became whining and crying. She couldn’t step away now.

Unwrapping The Bag

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Lizzie took a deep breath and stepped near the bag. She inched closer and gently poked it with her phone. Whatever was inside whined, the sound telling her that the animal was in distress.

Throwing all caution to the wind, Lizzie unwrapped the bag as fast as possible, her mouth hung open when she saw what awaited her inside.

The Worst

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She’d thought the worst when she first saw the trash bag move. Her imagination told her a giant snake was waiting for her inside. But even then, she couldn’t leave the poor animal trapped inside the bag.

She neared and opened the bag as quickly as possible and then jumped back, but what came out made her inch closer as her lips curled.

A Good Boy

Public Domain

“A puppy,” Lizzie whispered, beckoning the tiny fella to her. The pup ran to her and licked her hands while wagging her tail. Lizzie helped it into the car while her phone kept recording and drove away.

She sent out a notice on her social media about the dog as soon as she got home. As an animal lover, she couldn’t imagine someone doing something like this.

No Tag

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The puppy had a collar on, but he didn’t have a tag. Lizzie knew he had been someone’s pet, but how had he ended up in a trash bag on the side of the road?

Had he been stolen or intentionally dumped by his owners? Her heart sank as she thought about how cruel and heartless people could be. She shared his photo on Facebook in hopes that his owner would come forward.

To The Vet

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“If this is your puppy, let me know,” Lizzie wrote on Facebook, “If you are the scoundrel who put it in a garbage bag and tossed it on the side of the road, you’re a sicko.”

After posting a photo on social media, the first thing Lizzie did was take the poor pup to the vet for a checkup. The vet determined that he was only three months old and gave him a clean bill of health.

Going Viral

Times Of India

Lizzie’s story was shared so many times that it went viral on social media. Soon, she was giving interviews with the media about discovering the puppy.

“The bag was tied off in a knot, so I carefully tore a corner and looked inside,” she told The Dodo. “It was a puppy. And he sure was glad to see me. As soon as I opened it up, and he saw light, he just started wagging his tail. He knew he was OK. I couldn’t believe it.”

Her Worst Fears

Alabama Living Magazine

Even though her story had gone viral, nobody came forward to claim their puppy. Lizzie wasn’t too surprised – but it only confirmed her worst fears.

She had a sinking feeling that it was his owner who had cruelly dumped him on the side of the road. And she just couldn’t wrap her head around why anyone would do such an awful thing.

A Huge Problem

Animal Legal Defense Fund

According to The Humane Society, 6.3 million pets are surrendered to animal shelters in America each year. Around 3.1 million are dogs, and 3.2 million are cats.

But whoever had dumped the tiny pup hadn’t even done the right thing and taken him to a shelter for a chance at life. But abandonment of companion animals isn’t just a huge problem in the U.S. – it’s a problem worldwide.

How To Help

Ochsner Health

The best ways to help dogs and cats are to spay and neuter your animals to prevent unwanted litters and support your local animal shelter.

Millions of dogs and cats are euthanized every year – spaying and neutering as many pets as possible will ease the overpopulation problem. If you want a pet, don’t support animal breeders – instead, adopt a dog or cat from a shelter.

Home

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A month passed without anyone claiming the puppy. Lizzie and her daughters had already incorporated him into their family. Lizzie’s video also made her internet famous, with people commending her for her bravery and heart of gold.

Although she’d recovered from her cold, she was glad that such a dark experience had given rise to one of the best things for her family. The puppy, who they named Pete, was where he was always meant to be. But this wasn’t the last time she’d rescue an animal in need.

Little Visitor

The Dodo

About a year after Lizzie rescued Pete, Lizzie, who was shelving books in the historical nonfiction section at the library she worked at, noticed something peculiar curled up on one of the shelves.

She’d seen the odd rat in the library during her time there, but she had never seen a creature like this up-close before.

A Brown Bat

The Dodo

Not wanting to disturb the little critter, Lizzie quietly called the library director to confirm that the animal was indeed what she thought it was. He came over and couldn’t believe his eyes.

No – her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her. Curled up next to a book on the shelf was a cute little brown bat. And it was fast asleep.

Calling Animal Control

The Dodo

Lizzie, taking care not to wake the sleeping bat, called the local animal services. Officer Roy Bass arrived 20 minutes later.

“He was extremely calm and easygoing about the situation, even allowing us to take a quick photo of the bat with the book ‘Bats at the Library’ by Brian Lies,” Lizzie said in an interview. “He then gently moved the bat into a box and closed the lid quickly.” But how had the bat gotten in?

Bat Facts

Rarington Headwaters

The Little brown bat is found all over the northern U.S. and most parts of Canada. They live in colonies that can grow to hundreds of thousands of individuals.

Bat colonies gather at nesting sites, called roosts. Bat colonies will have several different types of roosts – some for resting or napping during the day, and others for shelter at night. The Little brown bat only eats insects.

Natural Pest Control

Wall Street Journal

While how the bat had broken into the library for a nap is anyone’s guess, it’s not uncommon to see bats in the libraries in Portugal.

In fact, bats are welcome guests. In these libraries. The logic is that the bats protect the books from pests like moths and other insects that eat paper and old manuscripts. However, bats aren’t welcome in most parts of the world because of their bad reputation.

Bad Rap

Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control

Bats have been persecuted all over the world. They are thought to be carriers of disease and suckers of blood. But the truth is, bats have an undeserved bad reputation.

Contrary to popular belief, most bats don’t have rabies. In fact, you are statistically more likely to contract rabies from a dog rather than a bat. So why do bats get such a bad rap?

Pathogens

DCist

But, concerns over bats carrying disease aren’t completely unfounded. They have gotten a bad reputation from the high profile pathogens they do carry, like Ebola, Marburg, and Nipah – all can be deadly.

Nevertheless, bats are a vital part of the ecosystem and help the environment in countless ways. Lizzie was an animal lover, and she would help any creature. So, what happened to the bat in the library?

Back Into The Wild

Jeaneu Empire

The little brown bat that Lizzie had found was released back into the wild by Animal Control. They released it in a nearby wildlife reserve.

But this wasn’t the only strange encounter for the library staff. Because the library was near a wildlife reserve, they have found squirrels in the Storytime room and stray cats among the stacks before.

Preserving All Life

BabaMail

Whether you encounter a domestic or wild animal in distress, you should always try to help if it’s safe to do so. If you can’t do anything personally, call Animal Control or someone else who can.

Lizzie knows that all animals serve a purpose on earth and are part of a complex ecosystem. If you want to do more to help, reach out to your local animal shelter or wildlife conservation center.