Rescue dog saves six kittens' lives

A dog named Paige was pregnant and in need of a home a few months ago.

That's when Sherman resident Linda Arnold, who's fostered more than 250 dogs, took Paige in.

"I had her five days and she delivered five healthy puppies," Arnold said.

After Paige fed her new puppies for eight weeks, they all were adopted last Friday. Though her puppies all have a new home now, Paige's job is not done yet.

"There were six little kittens that were two to three weeks old that were surely to die if we did not find someone who could bottle raise them or get them healthy," Anna Marcy said, who is on the board for the Durant Animal Rescue Alliance.

Marcy said she posted their need on Facebook. Arnold saw the post and called Marcy with an idea.

"'Hey, how about if we put them on Paige,' and she goes 'I've never tried to put kittens on a dog before, but lets try and see if it will work,'" Arnold said.

So they brought the kittens over to meet Paige and it miraculously worked.

"It was literally that feeling of, she's actually gonna take them and we were so excited," Arnold said.

Paige has now been nursing the six kittens back to health at Arnold's home in Sherman since Wednesday.

"She's doing a great job with them," Arnold said. "She licks them, cleans them."

Since it's difficult for the kittens to nurse from a dog, Arnold said she wakes up every three hours during the night to help. She said it's all worth it.

"We didn't just save Paige, we saved five puppies and six kittens," Arnold said.

Marcy said she hopes people can learn from Paige's story.

"It's good to see that even creatures of different species can show compassion and care for one another," Marcy said.

"If you can adopt, try to," Arnold said. "And these little guys will be up for adoption soon."

If you want more information on adopting the kittens, click on the related link for Durant Animal Rescue Alliance. If you want more information on adopting Paige, click on the related link for High Plains P.A.W.