Three weeks ago, Kristin Livan of the rescue Unwanted NYC Pets saw a video that broke her heart: it was of a three-year-old black Lab called Sweetness, depressed, coughing awfully, yet still trying so hard to seem strong at Manhattan Animal Care and Control. Sweetness looked like so many sad cases at the shelter, with her nipples still large; a dog often referred to as a throw-away-momma, a dog used for breeding and then discarded like an empty can of soda.
After consulting with her rescue partner, Betina Wasserman and their veterinarian, Dr. Joanne, they quickly pulled Sweetness from the dreaded euthanasia list. Sweetness - despite suffering from pneumonia - lived up to her name, and turned out to be a loving, adorable girl.
It seemed that within a few weeks, Sweetness was going to be ready for adoption and for making a lucky family very happy.
But fate had other plans.
On the night of February 5, this small lady surprised her rescuers by revealing her secret: she had been carrying puppies all along, and proceeded to giving birth to eight babies, in her foster home.
Sweetness beat all the odds. She survived the euthanasia list, she survived pneumonia, kept her pregnancy a secret, and gave birth to a whole little gang of healthy puppies - all within three weeks.
To make sure that both momma and babies keep doing well, they will be staying at Bensonhurst Veterinary Care in Brooklyn, and should be ready for adoption in about two months. Anyone interested in making a puppy (or Miss Sweetness herself) a member of their family, should email the rescue at this address for an application.
Follow Unwanted NYC Pets on Facebook and watch a touching video of Puppy #7's birth here.
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