Chihuahua plays surrogate mom to chipmunk

[Casshew]

Click the link to see the pic!

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A dog named Buffy has nursed a little rodent for a week

When Buffy the Chihuahua lost a puppy during a C-section July 29, the doctor sent her home with a replacement for consolation — a chipmunk weighing less than an ounce.
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Marty the chipmunk has adapted well to Buffy’s nursing, surprising even his caretaker.

“He won’t know he’s a chipmunk when his eyes open,” said Imogene Wills, 70, the dog’s owner.

The baby chipmunk, species not yet identified, was found in the parking lot of a nearby Safeway store. He was brought to the Companion Pet Clinic in Keizer the same morning as Buffy’s operation.
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“It’s unusual to see a chipmunk in the city limits,” said Dr. Mark Stoenner, clinic veterinarian.
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When the clinic’s receptionist, Marty’s namesake, showed the struggling chipmunk to Wills, she knew that Buffy, her long-hair, Deer head Chihuahua, could nurse him.
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“I thought mother’s milk is better than frozen goat’s milk,” Wills said. “Buffy is so protective. She thinks it’s a puppy.”

http://news.statesmanjournal.com/article.cfm?i=84647

 

[NewMom2003]

What a sweet story!

 

[dani]

Thanks for moving this for me Cass. And here's an update on Marty the Chipmunk:

Status report

Marty, chipmunk species not yet identified, weighed about 7/8 an ounce. when he was brought to Companion Pet Clinic in Keizer on July 29. He was no more than 2 to 3 days old.

He now weighs 1 1/4 ounces with no signs of rejection after seven days of nursing by Buffy, a Chihuahua.