Incredible Dog Has Just Adopted Five Orphaned Opossums And Is Raising Them Like Her Own

When a mother of five recently-born baby opossums was tragically killedin Brazil, the future did not look bright for them.

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Their mother was sadly attacked and killed by another animal. But Stephanie Maldonado, a young Brazilian woman, discovered the orphaned opossums and took them home with her to look after them.

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Only a few days old, the babies weren't yet weaned and couldn't feed themselves. So Stephanie used a baby bottle and fed each of them, one by one, every day.But the young woman never expected this surprising adoptive mother to come and help her look after them...

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Imagine her surprise when her little dog, Pretinha, decided to take over. In a truly incredible inter-species relationship, Pretinha has become the five opossum babies' new mother...

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They are getting closer and closer everyday, and Stephanie feels so lucky to watch their beautiful bond grow, expressing on herFacebook page:

It's so lovely to see her taking even better care of them! They never each other's side.

The photos of the little family are breathtaking!

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All five of the opossums can cling onto their canine mother's back so that she can walk around with them!

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And now that they're a bit bigger, the babies can feed themselves.

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... but they never stay too far from their mama!

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This friendship reminds us of the German Shepherd mother who adopted a baby opossum and the two remain best friends.

Whilst the baby opossums are still very dependent on their adoptive mother, Stephanie hopes she can one day let them stand on their own. For now though, they can be found clinging onto Pretinha's back.

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