Willow’s miracle: Stray dog and her puppies saved by emergency surgery, find love in Kemptville foster home

When a stray mama dog in distress was rushed to the veterinary clinic, an emergency C-section not only saved her life but brought six tiny puppies into the world, sparking a heartwarming story of resilience and compassion.

On Sunday, Dec. 8, a frightened and heavily pregnant dog was found wandering alone on Pine Hill Road. Kemptville Resident Jennifer Hunter’s son discovered the dog at his friend’s house hiding under the deck, terrified to come out.

“He brought her in and she wouldn’t leave his lap,” Hunter explained. “She was extremely hungry and they gave her some dog treats and some freshly cooked hamburger.”

Before long, Hunter and her son welcomed this lost dog into their home overnight, seeing as it had no tag, no name, and seemingly nowhere else to go. 

Hunter and friends immediately took to social media to see if anyone had lost their dog, but no one claimed her and her identity remains unknown. Seeing the dog was heavily pregnant, she was brought into the Cranberry Hill Veterinary Clinic where an emergency C-section took place.

“They did an X-ray to check to see how many babies there were, and there were eight. They all had low heart rates and one barely had anything. She was in labour, so they proceeded to give her a c-section to save the babies and mom’s life,” explained Hunter.

With no other name to go off of, Hunter and the veterinary staff began calling the dog Willow. Despite the precarious circumstances, Willow safely delivered six adorable and healthy pups, using the Jasmine Fund to cover the costs. The Jasmine Fund is a discretionary fund collected by donations for assisting to finance life saving procedures for clients at the veterinary clinic. 

In response to the unexpected surgery, Hunter’s friend Jennifer Digby set up a gofundme campaign to help raise some funds to continue care for Willow and her little ones. Digby told Brockvilleist,  “I did it to help with new costs she has incurred with caring for the puppies and the mom until a shelter is able to step up and determine the plan for the dogs.” 

She continued, “I also think raising funds to put back into the emergency purse of the local vet office (that was near emptied to perform the surgery and start the food for mom and babes) is important, as people always have emergencies with their pets and it would be ideal if the clinic had a small back-up fund still to help their clients in a time of need.”

Hunter told Brockvilleist, “I couldn’t see her go to a rescue and to be honest, my kids and myself fell in love with the mama right away, so I decided to foster her and the pups.”

Hunter shared that the first few days of hosting this new family at her home were touch and go.

“I had to weigh and feed them with a syringe every two hours, but their weight kept dropping. It was a very stressful two days. But mom finally came around and realized they were her babies and started taking on the role of feeding and cleaning. By Thursday, only the little female was still struggling with gaining weight. The five boys are getting bigger and stronger every day and mom is being absolutely wonderful.” 

Digby is very inspired by her friend’s decision to take action amid such uncertainty. “It’s such a wonderful act of kindness, especially this time of year with the hustle and bustle of the holidays! It’s a lot to take on without a plan or time to prepare”

Hunter shared that once all the puppies find a new loving home, she plans on keeping Willow, who will make a great addition to their family.