Mother dog adopts newborn kitten

NIAGARA FALLS, Ontario, Aug. 29 (UPI) -- The owners of an Ontario farm said a mother dog that recently had a litter of puppies has adopted a newborn kitten.

Donna Warner, who runs the Warner Ranch and Pumpkin Farm in Niagara Falls with her husband, Bill, said Coco the Belgian shepherd recently had a litter of eight puppies around the same time a cat named Mommy had a litter of eight kittens, the Niagara Falls Review reported Thursday.

Warner said she was shocked when she went into the barn recently and saw Coco nursing her eight puppies and one kitten, while Mommy continued to care for the other seven kittens.

Warner said she picked up the kitten and returned it to Mommy, but the feline soon returned to her adopted canine mother.

"I don't have a clue why this particular kitten keeps coming back," said Warner. "I've been on the farm here for 20 years and have never seen anything like this."

Warner said Coco and Mommy have been close since Mommy was a kitten.

"All of my animals are friendly, but I didn't think they were that friendly," Warner said. "Coco had adopted the mother since she was a kitten and would carry it around the yard. Now, the cat is big so she drags it around the yard. When Coco had her own puppies I thought she would realize she's a dog, but now she has pups and a kitten."