One of my Mom's favourite things to say springs to mind, "Shoulda, woulda, coulda..." Why did she wait until she saw the pictures posted on the website? It sounds like the pictures were posted on the shelter's adoption page. By Tuesday morning the 72 hours had passed, they left a message informing her of that.
Two mix breeds, one with puppies, in a crowded shelter. No identification but somebody calling and leaving a message that they were her dogs. They called back and left a message but she's upset she wasn't given until Tuesday afternoon? Really? How was the shelter to know they really were her dogs? Because she said so on a voicemail?
I do realize that some people view their puppy bearing dogs as an investment rather than family members... And leaving a message rather than getting her tush down to the shelter to make sure her dogs were ok in person would suffice (like if I lost my bike or something). Oh, nevermind, that train of thought makes my brain pop a little bit.
Let me get this straight though, they're keeping Whiskey in the garage to keep her away from Charlie's pups. When she's brought in for the interview she gets too close to the crate with the new mother and the pups, so Charlie, naturally, lunges. So the owner views Whiskey's demeanor as depression because she knows she can't have puppies anymore? Really? Why, because somebody told poor Whiskey she was sterile now and she cried? That would have been just mean.
It takes a few weeks for the hormones to leave her system, she doesn't know she can never have puppies. She knows she was uprooted from her home and put in a strange place. She was left alone long enough to dig out and escape from that place. She knows she was caught and put in a crate in ANOTHER place that smelled of strange people, dogs, and antiseptic. She knows she's sore, she knows she her companion lunged at her, she knows things aren't "right" because there are strangers around and her owner's ticked. Yeah, no doubt she's depressed. but over not being able to ever have puppies? That's the owner's issue, not hers. It sounds more like the owner's upset over lost income.