Georgia is an Australian shepherd mix who was found wandering near a gas station by the US-Mexico border. She was saved by rescuers from the Sunshine Dog Rescue, a non-profit organization based in Phoenix, Arizona.
“We care for and find fur-ever homes for abused, abandoned, and neglected dogs of all ages,” the rescue wrote on their website.
According to the rescuers, Georgia was pregnant when they found her. They quickly took her to a local veterinary, where she went through an emergency C-section and spay. But sadly, the vets were not able to save her unborn pups, and all of them were born prematurely. She could hardly stand it and became desperate when her puppies were lost.
“I’ve never had a mom dog lose a whole litter before,” Anita Osa, founder of Sunshine Dog Rescue, told ABC 15. “The best way I could describe it was she was frantic. It was so sad, she was looking for those babies. She tore up the toddler mattress we had her on, trying to find her babies.”
As Georgie was lactating, the shelter put out a call on Facebook to see if there were any puppies who would need breastfeeding. Surprisingly, Osa was connected with three orphaned kittens who were desperate for a caring mom.
At first, Osa wasn’t sure that the dog would accept the cats, but in no time, they proved to be a perfect match.
“I was certainly unsure,” Osa told the media. “But I had seen other species nurse another species before, so I thought ‘worse case scenario she doesn’t take to them and I have some kittens I need to tend to myself.’”
“I introduced them to her gently. I first brought one out and let her sniff it, and she seemed to accept it, so I brought the others out. It’s amazing to see how she instantly calmed down. I think for the kittens, they have no idea that Georgia is a dog.”
Luckily, the kittens were doing perfectly well under the care of their new dog mom and the rescue center. Osa says that Georgia protects the kittens as if they were her own.
We are happy to know that all four animals were adopted by their new families. In fact, Georgia even lives with one of her kitten babies, as the roommate of the person who took her in adopted the kitten.