Rosie was heavily pregnant when they decided to rescue her. They had rescued many dogs before, but they had never seen anything like this before
They were baffled as they watched the puppies emerge. They had a million questions, but they knew that they had to find help right away.
Left Behind
Rosie was a golden retriever mix late into her pregnancy when her owners decided to leave her at the shelter.
The shelter didn't have the resources to look after a litter of puppies, and staff grew worried as her pregnancy was approaching its end. Rosie needed someone urgently.
Helping Hands
The shelter's manager knew of a place that could provide Rosie with exactly what she needed. It was the Neuse River Golden Retriever Rescue. They specialized in rehabilitating golden retrievers and they would find foster homes for these pups until they would get adopted.
As luck may have it, one of their staff had the perfect couple in mind.
Vet Visit
When the Neuse River Golden Retriever Rescue picked Rosie up from the shelter, one of the volunteers noted that Rosie was extremely far along, and that she could go into labor before they even made it to a vet.
Luckily they did manage to get Rosie to the vet in time, and they determined that she was in perfect health. The next step was for them to find Rosie a suitable and experienced foster family. They would need someone that could assist her during labor.
Foster Family
John and Katie Black loved fostering animals and especially dogs. They had been doing it since 2009 and by this point, they had fostered over 20 dogs. The volunteer knew that they would be perfect to assist Rosie during labor.
It was just five days after her previous owners had abandoned Rosie at the shelter, and here she was, being welcomed into the Black's household. They never could have foreseen how this would turn out.
Instagram Post
The family posted about Rosie on their Instagram, captioning their post: "This is our new foster, Rosie, who is very preggers and close to delivering her puppies." When the Black's had first gotten Rosie, she was quite shy and frightened, and they couldn't blame her, she had been through a lot.
But when she would finally give birth, the family would share a surprise that would fascinate the internet.
Into Labor
As soon as Rosie went into labor, Kate and John did everything they could to ensure that she would be as comfortable as possible.
It was a complicated birth, but the couple did their very best to make sure that all of the puppies survived. When the puppies began to appear, the couple's eyes grew wide. They couldn't believe what they were seeing.
Kept Going
They were bewildered by the puppies that were emerging.
But this wasn't the time to stall, they ignored what the puppies looked like and helped Rosie. They did what they could to keep Rosie's strengths up and made sure that the puppies were coming out in a reasonable timeframe. Given how large her belly was, they expected it to be a large litter, but they were about to see that that was not the case.
Healthy Pups
They couldn't believe it when she only gave birth to four puppies. Usually dog her size would have five or six puppies, but all four of her pups were healthy and big.
Kate sighed in relief once it was all over. That was when she decided to update her followers on social media. Her post would send the online community into a frenzy.
"Baby Cows"
Kate smiled as she wrote the amusing caption, "“Our foster dog, a Golden mix, gave birth yesterday… To baby cows,” The pups sure did look like baby cows! They had black spots all over them, they looked nothing like Rosie.
As a joke, the couple named the pups Clarabelle, Betsy, Daisy, and Moo. The internet loved it and they wouldn't get enough of it!
Internet Sensation
It wasn’t long before Kate’s social media account blew up with messages and jokes about the strange, spotted creatures.
“My dad laughed for quite a while at the photos,” Kate told the Press Association. It was clear that the father of the pups wasn’t a golden retriever like Rosie. But then, just what was he?
A Mystery
There are many dog breeds that have white fur and black spots. And social media users loved the mystery as everyone tried to guess what he was.
Some were sure that Rosie had fallen in love with a Dalmation, others suggested the dad had been an English setter. There was no shortage of theories as everyone got in on the guessing game. So, who was right?
Guessing Game
While there are many breeds with white fur and black spots, one candidate seems more likely than the rest.
Only dalmatians have true “spots.” Dogs with other markings have what is known as “ticking” - their markings are made up of small, isolated areas of tiny dots. Meanwhile, Rosie’s family photo was spreading like wildfire.
Rosie’s Expression
It was Kate’s dad who suggested that Kate post the photos of the puppies on Reddit - he had a feeling that they would go viral, and he was right. Rosie and her babies blew up the internet!
What made the photos even funnier was the fact that Rosie looked just as perplexed by her puppies as everyone else!
Online Celebrity
More than 90,000 users liked the photo, and 1,600 users commented. And when Kate shared the photo on Instagram, the couple’s popularity skyrocketed.
“I believe there’s been a mixpup here,” one Reddit user wrote. Others commented on Rosie’s comical expression, saying that she looked like she was defending her choices:: “so what?!?! is that really such a big deal? are you sooo closed minded?” Other commenters, however, weren’t so positive.
Backlash
Of course, as with most viral stories, there were a few haters. Although most people who saw the photos of Rosie’s “cow” pups were positive about the situation, others accused Kate and John of allowing their foster rescue dogs to breed.
In the Blacks defense, Rosie was already pregnant when they took her in. After receiving hateful comments, Katie was careful to specify that they hadn’t allowed Rosie to get pregnant.
Unwanted Litters
Kate clarified that they had received Rosie already pregnant. “We weren’t going to abort her puppies,” she commented. “She will be spayed immediately when she can be.”
It’s unfortunate that Rosie had gotten pregnant in the first place. While Kate and John didn’t want her litter to contribute to the number of unwanted dogs in the world, they had to do the best they could for them. Meanwhile, Rosie’s recovery wasn’t going as planned.
Infection
Although the birth was successful, Rosie’s health began to decline. After she delivered her litter, the Blacks realized that she had an infection.
Rosie suffered from Metritis - a bacterial infection in her uterus - caused by having a difficult birth. The vet prescribed antibiotics for several weeks while the Blacks looked after the pups.
Healing
Fortunately, Rosie’s infection cleared up and she could finally feed her puppies herself. In no time, she had returned to health settled right in - happy to be a mom and care for her puppies.
Rosie was a good mother, too. She was protective of her pups, following them around wherever they went. As the pups grew up, they stopped resembling cows.
Growing Up
In two weeks, the puppies had opened their eyes, and Kate and John were falling more in love with them by the second. Soon, they were tearing around the garden on their shaky little legs.
Rosie appeared content to be a lovingly devoted mother to her babies. Soon, requests to adopt them came flooding into the rescue center.
A Good Mom
Rosie was an exceptional mom to all her pups. She loved licking them from head to toe and nursing them.
Kate and John looked on with devotion, this mama had been through so much and now she could breathe easy as she was in complete safety. But still, all the pups needed to find homes!
Attached
Although the couple was extremely attached to all the puppies, they decided not to keep any, of them.
One by one, when they were 10 weeks old, they were taken by their new families to their new homes, where they continue to thrive. But what about their mother, Rosie?
Forever Home
Rosie has found her forever home, too. Soon after, a man read about Rosie’s incredible tale on Facebook, and he couldn’t wait to meet her. He fell in love with her immediately and took her into his home.
She has a happy life ahead of her now and has been sterilized to ensure that she never has to go through an ordeal like that again.
Loving Families
All of the baby “cows” have been adopted by loving families who will protect them and love them every single day. And Rosie?
She did too, but she didn’t leave to be with her new family until every last one of her pups had been adopted — seeing them off like the good mother that she is. if it wasn’t for amazing people like the Blacks, Rosie’s story would have been a lot worse.
Adopt, Don’t Shop
Rosie’s tale is just one of many, and thanks to a dedicated shelter and a couple’s love for the breed, she is sure to have a life of happiness.
Shelters need all the help they can get, so even if you are unable to adopt a rescue animal, you may be able to foster instead. If you are unable to foster, then you can donate, or even just help spread awareness about rescue organizations and the amazing animals waiting for forever homes there.