
Pregnant Rescue Dog Gives Birth, Moment She Attacks Owner Caught on Camera
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A couple who brought in a pregnant foster dog experienced a brief scare after the mother went after the woman, trying to protect her babies.
JJ Knight and his partner, Ella, quickly stepped in to foster a pregnant St. Bernard named Daisy. Her previous owner surrendered her due to being unable to fund her birth. They were told Daisy would give birth in a few weeks, but only four days into fostering, the day arrived.
She gave birth at the veterinarian's office after the couple took Daisy there for a health check. They learned she was underweight, low on calcium, and had been overbred; this became her third litter in three years.
They transferred her from the vet's office, which was closing, to the emergency vet mid labor, as they did not feel comfortable bringing her back home knowing she still had low calcium.
"Once the puppies started feeding on her, they could deplete her calcium levels so much, she could end up having a seizure," Knight told Newsweek via email.
Daisy gave birth to nine puppies, and despite the health scare, both momma and her babies all survived. They received the all clear to go home, where the couple had a whelping pen ready for her to use.
Screenshots from a July 7 Instagram video of a St. Bernard mother attacking her rescuer while trying to protect her puppies.
Screenshots from a July 7 Instagram video of a St. Bernard mother attacking her rescuer while trying to protect her puppies.
@thegoldenkobefamily/Instagram
While caring for this mother and her pups, Knight and Ella noticed Daisy change, almost giving up on her babies, which the couple thought could be because this was her third litter in three years. She stopped feeding the puppies. She kept leaving the whelping pen. Daisy became protective, but not caring, Knight said.
That's when Daisy went after Ella one day when she came in to check on them. Their July 7 Instagram video, posted to the account @thegoldenkobefamily, showed a feeling coming over Daisy as she attacked Ella, barking and snipping.
"It was strange because we were with her the whole time during the birth, and helped her, and she was more than happy to be helped," Knight said. "Once she had given birth, she was happy for us to place the puppies on her teat for milk, happy for us to come and feed her."
Because the puppies were not getting enough food or stimulation, the couple consulted experts and was advised to separate them from Daisy. They began bottlefeeding all nine puppies every two hours, which they said became the hardest nights of their life.
Luckily, the couple received help. Another foster parent took in five of the puppies, with another St. Bernard mom who accepted the new babies as hers. Someone else brought in Daisy and a few other pups. Knight and Ella kept three to hand-feed. And now, all nine puppies and Daisy have been adopted.
Looking back on Daisy's moment of attack, Knight said Ella didn't take it to heart.
"It was scary at the time, but she was just being a protective mother," Knight said.
But this incident led Knight and Ella to be more cautious around Daisy, taking precautionary steps to make sure she didn't feel the need to become protective of her babies around them.
Knight said they've received hate on Instagram for the incident, with many comments stating the warning signs were there and they meddled too much. But Knight explained the whole story couldn't be told in a three-minute reel. They shared a longer YouTube video, with the help of their strategist Leroy ter Braak, to explain the situation.
"We know we did things wrong, but we got as much help from professionals as we could," Knight said. "And at the end of the day, we managed to save Daisy and help her deliver nine healthy puppies, who all survived, so we were really proud and happy about that."

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