We’ve seen lions become best friends with dachshunds, despite their massive size difference. We’ve seen panthers bond with Rottweilers and even humans, creating the most unusual but heartwarming families. There was even a case where an ordinary house cat adopted a lynx kitten and raised it alongside her own litter, and the lynx was perfectly happy with that.
A Golden Retriever’s Extraordinary Act of Love
And today, we bring you another remarkable example of cross-species love, a Golden Retriever mother who adopted three rare white Bengal tiger cubs.
Yes, the photo you’re seeing is real. Though this story first went viral a few years ago, it’s one that deserves to be retold. It took place at Safari Zoological Park in southeast Kansas, where a golden retriever named Isabella took on the role of mother to three abandoned tiger cubs.
The Tiger Mother Who Couldn’t Cope
The cubs’ biological mother, also living at the zoo, had rejected them shortly after birth. According to park owner Tom Harvey, the tiger mother “had problems with them”. As reported by The Los Angeles Times, just one day after the cubs were born, she stopped caring for them altogether. The tiny cubs wandered around searching for her attention, but she ignored them. That’s when the zookeepers decided to place the helpless cubs under Isabella’s care.
Nature’s Perfect Timing
It’s certainly unusual for a dog to raise tiger cubs, and Harvey acknowledges that. But sometimes nature surprises us. He explained that tiger cubs and puppies develop at roughly the same pace, and as luck would have it, Isabella had just weaned her own litter. “The timing couldn’t have been any better”, he said.
A Mother’s Love Without Boundaries
Isabella didn’t seem to notice any difference between her tiger babies and her puppies. She cleaned them, licked them, and even allowed them to nurse, feeding them as if they were her own. The cubs needed a mother’s warmth, and Isabella was more than happy to give it.
A Bittersweet Goodbye
Of course, this arrangement couldn’t last forever. About a year later, the cubs had to part ways with their adoptive mom. But they had already experienced something precious, a year of love, care, and security.
“They love Isabella”, said Allie Harvey in an interview with Today. “They actually enjoy playing with Sandy, Isabella’s puppy, even more than with her. Izzy just kind of supervises everything”.
Love Beyond Species
In the end, what started as a desperate attempt to save three abandoned tiger cubs became a touching story of love that knows no boundaries, a reminder that compassion can bridge even the widest gaps between species.