Health officials sound alert after puppy at Colorado adoption event tests positive for rabies

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment says anyone who attended the July 20 event at Moms and Mutts Colorado Rescue for Pregnant and Nursing Dogs in Sheridan should be screened for rabies

A puppy at an adoption event in the south Denver metro area last month has tested positive for rabies, and now state health officials are racing to find anyone who attended the event so that they can be screened for the almost-always fatal disease.

The puppy was part of a litter of 12 at a July 20 event hosted by Moms and Mutts Colorado Rescue for Pregnant and Nursing Dogs, also known as MAMCO. The event took place at the rescue’s shelter at 2721 W. Oxford Ave. in Sheridan. The address is sometimes also listed as in Englewood.

The puppy, along with its littermates, came from Texas and was unvaccinated for rabies at the time of exposure. At the event, the puppy’s litter was known as the “July Shepherd Mix” litter and may have also been referred to as the “Celebrity Kids” litter.