The rescue dog who has become a surrogate mother for the 50th time.
Edwin Ng sent us the following story complete with photos. We thought it is too good to be true. So we goggled Snopes which confirmed its authenticity. We also looked up the Daily Mail of 31 December 2008 for further confirmation.
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| Perfect mum: Jasmine the greyhound with Bramble, the roe deer she is currently caring for |
When Jasmine the abandoned greyhound arrived at a wildlife
sanctuary shivering and desperate for food, she needed all the love in
the world to nurse her back to full health.
Now it appears the
kindness and patience shown to her has rubbed off - for the rescue dog
has become a surrogate mother for the 50th time.
Seven-year-old
Jasmine is currently caring for tiny Bramble, an 11-week-old roe deer
fawn found semi-conscious in a nearby field.
She cuddles up to
her to keep her warm, showers her with affection and makes sure nothing
is matted in her fur. In short, the perfect foster mum.
But
then again, she has had plenty of practice, having cared for five fox
cubs, four badger cubs, 15 chicks, eight guinea pigs, two stray puppies
and even 15 rabbits.
Jasmine was brought to the Nuneaton and
Warwickshire Wildlife Sanctuary by the police in 2003, having been found
dumped in a garden shed.
She was cold, filthy and
malnourished. It took a few weeks for her to fully trust staff at the
centre but with tender loving care she was nursed back to full fitness.
Five years on, Jasmine is now the one looking after stray waifs.
Geoff Grewcock, who runs the sanctuary, said: 'She simply dotes on the animals as if they were her on, it's incredible to see.
'She takes all the stress out of them and it helps them to not only feel close to her but to settle into their new surroundings.
'As soon as an animal is brought in, she walks over takes a sniff or two and then licks and cuddles them.
'It
is quite amazing, particularly as she is a greyhound breed and they are
usually quite aggressive, That is why they are used for racing.
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| Jasmine with another one of her 'babies'. She has cared for 15 rabbits in total |
'Jasmine was abused when she was younger,
the police brought her to us after discovering her whimpering in a garden shed.
'She was very nervous around us,
she was caked in mud and dust and very thin. It took a while but gradually she
got used to us and has been at the centre ever since.
'Having been neglected herself,
it's a real surprise to she her show so much warmth and affection to other
creatures.
'It's not just animals, she is
great which children too, she is such a gentle, big-hearted dog.'
Bramble the fawn arrived at the
centre two months ago after a dog walker came across her in a field dazed and
confused.
Until she is old enough to be
released back into the wild, she will continue to be cared for by Jasmine.
Geoff added: 'They are inseparable
at the moment, Bramble walks between her legs and they keep kissing each other.
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| Happy family: Pictured from left to right are
Toby, a stray Lakeland dog; Bramble, an orphaned roe deer; Buster, a
stray Jack Russell; a dumped rabbit; Sky, an injured barn owl, and
Jasmine
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'They walk together round the sanctuary. It's absolutely marvellous. It's a real treat to see them.
'But she is like that with all of our animals, even the rabbits which greyhounds usually chase down the track.
'I
remember we had two puppies that had been abandoned by a nearby railway
line, one was a Lakeland Terrier cross and another was a Jack Russell
Doberman cross.
'They were tiny when they arrived at the
centre and Jasmine approached them and grabbed one by the scruff of the
neck in her mouth and put him on the settee.
'Then he fetched the other one and sat down with them, cuddling them.
'She
has done the same with the fox and badger cubs, she licks the rabbits
and guinea pigs and even lets the birds perch on the bridge of her nose.
'It's very touching. Her maternal instincts take over all the time.'
Jasmine passed away in October 2011. She will be sorely missed.
