Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell
Kassy and her two litters – released from the Zoo.

Today’s good news story comes from the Good News Network. Here it is in its entirety.

This Golden Retriever is Nursing 3 African-painted Painted Dog Pups at Indiana Zoo After their Mother Abandoned Them

By

Andy Corbley

At the Potawatomi Zoo in Indiana, a mama golden retriever has her paws as full as can be these days looking after a huge litter of pups—but half aren’t hers.

The Zoo had the unhappy issue of an African-painted dog who was a first-time mom and wasn’t displaying the level of care required to raise her litter of 8 pups. The Zoo’s canine team knew they had to act fast.

The group wanted to use a surrogate mother because the African-painted dog relies on the social group into which it was born. The Indiana Council for Animal Welfare connected the Zoo with a golden retriever named Kassy, who just gave birth to a litter of her own.

But even with Kassy’s love and attention, the litter of 8 experienced some cases of failure to thrive owing to a lack of presence from members of their species. However, three individuals were resilient and survived. Due to the delicate nature of baby animals, their names were simply Blue, Red, and Orange—identity codes to various shades on their coats to prevent their caretakers from becoming too attached.

The three will form a new social group in an enclosure next to the one into which they should have been welcomed. Abandoned more or less by their mom, the canine team at the Zoo is wary that reintegrating them as pups will cause conflict for the same reason they were abandoned. They will live separately and perhaps reunite in adulthood.

African painted dogs might be one of the more resilient African animals due to their limited value to poachers and large litter sizes, but because they need tens of thousands of acres to roam and hunt, fragmentation of habitat has caused them to become endangered.

The painted dogs, now 11 weeks old – released by the Zoo

“It has been an emotionally exhausting and challenging journey for the team, but it is the Zoo’s mission to work toward the preservation of wild species,” the Zoo said in a press release concerning the pups

“Sometimes the journey is smooth, and sometimes it takes extraordinary measures. These three healthy, active pups are just the start of this story, and the Zoo hopes to share more positive updates of their milestones in the future.”

Red, Orange, and Blue are thriving under Kassy’s care and are now 11 weeks old. They will hopefully live on to produce pups of their own that may return someday to Africa, but in the meanwhile, their early struggles present critical lessons to zoo visitors on the delicate nature of wild social structures and how important it is that animals are given their own space.

The good news here is the zoo folks took decisive action to save the pups. Today’s JohnKu talks about saving lives. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Precious by John W. Howell © 2023

There is no value,

That can be placed on a life . . .

All remain precious.

74 thoughts on “Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News”

  1. These creatures are fascinating. I only wish they had the chance to live as they should and not in a retrofitted habitat that is “The wild” in name only. But this zoo is doing the great good work to give them a chance and good for them. Good for all of them.

    Liked by 1 person

  2. I am not fond of zoos unless they serve this very purpose. To help species survive and thrive. It would be nice if they can be let out into the wild but I imagine it will be difficult as their start in life is in safe surroundings. I do love that this golden mom was so welcoming to the three!
    Wonderful JohnKu and happy Friday, John!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Dale. I think you have identified the best part of zoo activity. I wish they could be released but they are not going to be ready to survive. Happy Friday to you and hope you have a super weekend.

      Liked by 1 person

  8. All of Nature tries to maintain a balance, only we disturb it. It is great that some try to restore the damage. There was a terrific “Nature” program like that a few days ago.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. I read about this – Kassy was a good mother, but no substitute for the real thing, unfortunately. Still, they saved three pups, and that is a real accomplishment. Thanks for the share.

    Liked by 1 person

  15. What a sweet Golden mama! That said, she’s kinder than I’d be, seeing that those “painted puppies” are about as ugly as can be (did I say that?? Yes, I did — sorry, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder, huh?!)

    Liked by 1 person

  20. What a wonderful story, John! I’m so glad the zoo and Kassy were able to help as they did so these young pups were able to thrive. I love tales (or tails, LOL) like this!!

    Liked by 1 person

  23. What a beautiful story, John. I knew nothing of the painted dogs before your post. Thank you for bringing them to our attention. And your poem is perfect for the story. 😊

    Liked by 1 person

  24. I’ve always liked Golden Retrievers but now I’m impressed! Such a wonderful story. Like Dale, I don’t care for zoos unless they’re doing this kind of work.

    Liked by 1 person

  28. Never heard of this species until now.
    This is a wonderful story. Kassy is a good mom. Makes me think of Lucy when you brought Twiggy home.
    As you say,”All remain precious”.
    Thank you!
    🐶𝔛 🐶𝔛 🐶𝔛
    3 beautiful pups!

    Liked by 1 person

  29. It is sad that the mother rejected the pups. African painted dogs are endangered. It’s not only fragmentation of their natural habitat but also the farmers kill them. Wild dogs have a 80% successful kill rate and can eat up to 3 times a day (in comparison, lions have a 25%to 30% successful kill rate).

    Liked by 1 person

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