Grieving Mother Whose Babies Died In A Fire Becomes Surrogate For Orphan Puppies

Daisy is a Border Collie and Pyrenees mix from Roseburg, Oregon. She had recently given birth to a beautiful litter of seven puppies, and was the proudest mama around.

^Source:^{Daisy Woodruff/Facebook}

Then tragedy struck.On February 20, the heaters in the barn, which had been keeping the puppies warm, caught fire and the whole structure burnt down. The puppies, four goats and one pig, all died in the blaze.Daisy was absolutely heartbroken.Her mom, Jessica Woodruff, told Buzzfeed News:

We had to hold Daisy as she tried to run into [it].

^Source:^{Daisy Woodruff/Facebook}

Afterwards, the dog still had troubles coping with the loss.

Daisy wasn’t really eating, was walking down to the barn whining and sitting down. My heart broke for this new mom — that’s all she wanted.

Woodruff decided to post on Facebook asking for help. She was looking for foster babies for the grieving mother, to give her a sense of purpose again.

^Source:^{Daisy Woodruff/Facebook}

They had already reached out to shelters in the area, but no luck. Daisy's story went viral and many people reached out to offer puppies, but they all still had mothers. Woodruff's sister, Christine Nelson,told The News Review:

We had so many people willing to split their litters up. But we just knew we couldn’t do that.

As fate would have it, not too far away, the Murphy family was grieving a dog of their own.Chloe, a Border Collie, had given birth to a litter of eight puppies on February 15.

^Source:^{Daisy Woodruff/Facebook}

Unfortunately, soon after she started acting sick, and when they rushed her to the vet, they discovered she had two more babies still inside her. They tried to surgically remove them, but she died on the operating table.The family had to deal with their own pain while taking care of the eight new puppies who needed round-the-clock care.Deanna Murphy-Vest told People Magazine:

It was a terrible first few days of mourning the loss of Chloe and trying to feed eight puppies with a 3 milliliter syringe. The puppies needed [feeding] every two hours around the clock. With eight puppies it seemed like by the time you were done feeding them all, it was time to start over.

Murphy heard about Daisy, and immediately contacted Woodruff.

^Source:^{Daisy Woodruff/Facebook}

She brought the puppies over to meet their surrogate mother, and they took to each other immediately.They started nursing immediately and Daisy is apparently "in heaven."Woodruff told Buzzfeed News:

[She] is so much more herself. It’s amazing how much they helped her heal.

The puppies have been left with the Woodruff family until they are old enough to be weaned off. Some of them have already been returned to the Murphy's and to their dad, now that they're strong enough.An incredibly moving end to a tragic story.

* * *

At Holidog, we aim to improve the lives of your furry friends. Enjoy your holidays with peace of mind, knowing your pet is in great hands (find a petsitter near you) and spoil them with our monthly subscription box filled with yummy treats and toys (get your free box here). You can count on us!

* * *