DALTON, Ga. — The sad story of a puppy left abandoned at a city dump in Dalton might sound like a plot for the next Pixar movie, or it could serve as the perfect reminder this holiday season of the gratitude we should all feel for our blessings.

Either way, the story of the female Chihuahua puppy workers at the Humane Society of Northwest Georgia have named Martine already has a happy ending, and the frantic ball of energy bouncing around the group’s shelter Tuesday will undoubtedly bring plenty of Christmas cheer for the local family who adopts her.

The dog was found abandoned Monday morning, left in a Huggies diaper box in the walk-in, mixed-paper recycling trailer at the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard convenience center. Harvey Duncan, a Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority part-time employee, noticed the box hadn’t been broken down and flattened like the other boxes, and that’s when workers found the puppy.

“We have found a few cats in the area, but very seldom do we have pets that have been abandoned,” said employee Chester Bearden, who was working with Duncan on Monday. “We just sort of looked at each other and said, ‘Well, I wonder who would do that?’ The dog seemed to be in good health, and it was just like maybe someone couldn’t take care of it. Basically, it looked like maybe someone was being forced to get rid of it or couldn’t take care of it anymore.”

Bearden said his first inclination was to take the dog home, but when his wife wasn’t thrilled with the idea, he tried to find a home for the dog.

“I tried to give it away, but I couldn’t find anyone to give it to,” Bearden said. “It is a beautiful little dog. She had all kinds of energy and was jumping around and playing. I tried to take a couple of pictures of it with my phone, but it was jumping around and playing so much it was hard for me to keep my phone focused real good.”

Liz Swafford, the authority’s recycling and education program coordinator, said there are nearly half a million visitors a year to the four convenience centers the authority runs and trying to find out who might have left the puppy would be nearly impossible.

After Bearden struck out on finding a home for the little puppy, the authority turned to the Humane Society, which took the dog in and christened it Martine since the dog was found at the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard convenience center.

Stories like Martine’s are all too common with the shelter taking in animals in many different ways — from animal shelter rescues to people trying to find a safe harbor for the animals. Executive Director Devon Brooks said this December has been a very successful one with 32 adoptions so far. And she hopes to have more than 40 adopted by the time the month is over. Typically, the Humane Society has 40 to 45 adoptable pets depending on kennel space.

Among the group of animals recently rescued by the Humane Society were three puppies who were found near the recent wildfires by firefighters from Oregon who were in northwest Georgia fighting the blazes. The three puppies were found beside the body of their mother, who had died. Two — Tazz and Tsar — have been adopted, but Faith still needs a home. Another dog had to be given to the Humane Society after an elderly woman was forced to move to a nursing home.

“We have a lot of stories like that,” Brooks said, as Martine bounced nearby on a couch looking for any attention she could get.

Adoption events are each Saturday at the shelter at 1703 Cleveland Highway from noon to 4 p.m. and from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Petco on Shugart Road. The shelter averages 35 animals on site with adoption fees ranging from $150 for dogs and puppies to $50 for cats. All adoptable animals have their full vaccinations and shots and are spayed or neutered.

For more information about the adoption process or to donate to the Humane Society, visit the group’s website at www.hsnwga.org.

For video of Martine the abandoned puppy, go to www.daltonnow.com.