Dog sniffs out puppies tied up in bag at East Bay park 
 
 
 
 
 
 Photo: Courtesy / Contra Costa Animal Services Image 1 of / 2 Caption Close Image 1 of 2 Three terrier puppies, abandoned in a trash bag in an East Bay park in January, will soon go up for adoption. Three terrier puppies, abandoned in a trash bag in an East Bay park in January, will soon go up for adoption. Photo: Courtesy / Contra Costa Animal Services Image 2 of 2 Three terrier puppies, abandoned in a trash bag in an East Bay park in January, will soon go up for adoption. Three terrier puppies, abandoned in a trash bag in an East Bay park in January, will soon go up for adoption. Photo: Courtesy / Contra Costa Animal Services Dog sniffs out puppies tied up in bag at East Bay park 1 / 2 Back to Gallery 
 
 Being in the doghouse is a welcome upgrade for three 5-week-old puppies who were rescued by a couple and their dog who found the trio tied up in a garbage bag in an East Bay park on Monday. 
 
 The Good Samaritans, who weren’t fully identified, were walking their dog in Paso Nogal Park in Pleasant Hill when the Australian shepherd took an interest in a plastic bag in a box near a trash can, said Rick Golphin, deputy director of Contra Costa County Animal Services. 
 
 The couple went to investigate and opened the bag, which had been tied at the top, and found three terrier puppies inside. After taking the pups home, and washing and feeding them, the couple brought the dogs to animal services, Golphin said. 
 
 “We see a lot of animal abandonment, but seeing cruelty of this type is pretty rare,” he said. “The big takeaway from this is to get your animals spayed or neutered.” 
 
 Anyone who has information about the puppies’ former owners, or how the dogs ended up in the park, is urged to contact Contra Costa Animal Services at (925) 335-8300. 
 
 Golphin said the puppies, because they are so young, may get fostered before they go up for adoption, but that decision will be made after they are evaluated in the next few days. 
 
 Kale Williams is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: kwilliams@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @sfkale 

 Three very young terrier puppies are alive and well after being found in a trash bag Monday near a garbage can in Pleasant Hill's Paso Nogal Park, Contra Costa County animal control officials said.A man and woman were walking their Australian shepherd in the park when the dog alerted them to the trash bag, which had been tied shut with the puppies inside. The animals were taken home, cleaned up, fed and brought in to the Contra Costa Animal Services shelter.Rick Golphin, the agency's deputy director, said the puppies are in good hands and can be put up for adoption in a day or two."They've all been medically assessed," Golphin said. "We'll probably make a decision on making them available (Wednesday). At that time, they will be available to the public unless something else occurs."Anyone with information about the former owners of the puppies or how they came to be found in a trash bag in the park is asked to call (925) 335-8366.Anyone interested in volunteering with Contra Costa Animal Services can contact volunteer coordinator Cindy Smith at (925) 335-8300.
– A couple was walking their dog in a park east of San Francisco when the Australian shepherd stopped to check out a garbage bag in a box near a trash can. The couple opened the bag, which was tied at the top, and found three 5-week-old terrier puppies inside. After taking them home to feed and bathe them, the couple then took the puppies to Contra Costa County Animal Services. The Animal Services director tells the San Francisco Chronicle that while abandonment is common, "cruelty of this type is pretty rare." He adds in an ABC7 News report that the terriers are in good hands now, have been "medically assessed," and should be up for adoption as soon as they're a bit older. (Another dog found an abandoned baby in a park in England.)