The pups, rescued by firefighters battling the Funny River fire in the Kenai Peninsula Tuesday, will become residents of The Minnesota Zoo in Apple Valley, Minn., the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Saturday.

All five pups suffered porcupine quill wounds when the one of the spine-covered critters likely barged into pups' den trying to find a refuge in the early days of the fire, raging since May 19, officials said.

The five are receiving treatment at the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage, but that facility doesn’t have the room to provide a home for the pups, zoo officials said this week.


The two females and three males will remain at the Alaska Zoo until they are healthy enough to be moved to Minnesota, the department said. The move to Minnesota ensures the five will remain together, officials said.


“It’s the companionship,” said Pat Lampi, executive director of the Alaska Zoo. “They were born together in the wild and now they can grow up together. As long as they remain together, wherever they go is home.”
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