Why do dogs raise other animals’ puppies? The specific development of surrogacy

Nowadays, videos of dogs raising other animals' puppies are becoming more and more common on the internet. Why are they doing this?

Some dogs have such a strong maternal instinct that they even take other animals’ puppies under their wing, care for them and raise them. On the internet you often see videos of dogs raising kittens, chicks or even tiger cubs. Dogs seem to make little distinction between animal and animal, be it a cat or a deer. But why do they do this?

Why do they raise other animals’ pups?

All mammals release pheromones that have a communicative value, containing information. These tell us, among other things, how old an animal is. Dogs are best informed by smell. If they smell an orphaned mammal’s pheromones near them, they will often mother it, says Dr Stanley Coren a psychologist. By their very nature, dogs need socialisation and companionship, whether it’s with humans or any other animal. Although they prefer to be around another dog, it is not uncommon for them to be interested in other species. According to Dr Coren, there can be similarities between a child’s relationship with a cuddly toy and a dog’s relationship with another animal it has raised. The toy gives children a sense of support and a very strong emotional bond. According to the psychologist, the other pet is essentially the emotional support, the friend and companion of the dog. They are cared for and loved, just as children love their pets.

Empathy or instinct?

Do dogs really feel sorry for orphaned pets or are they just acting on instinct when they raise a new arrival? Dogs can sense when a living creature near them is stressed and “adoption” may be a reaction. Some say that a dog’s perception and thinking is the same as a three-year-old child’s. If we follow this theory, we can conclude that they don’t feel empathy, as it doesn’t develop in humans until around the age of five. But nowadays, more and more people consider this theory to be wrong, as no parallels can be drawn between a human and a dog. And a three year old could certainly not drive a blind person or or save lives after a disaster.

Often bitches who are still suckling and have a strong maternal instinct will take an orphaned animal. But male dogs may also take pets under their wing, so it’s not the only reason for this heartwarming habit. In zoos, it is relatively common to see orphans whose mothers have died or simply refuse to adopt them being raised by dogs. They nurse, clean and raise the babies until they are often bigger than their surrogate mothers. A tiger or lion, for example, is a spectacular example. After a while, the family is usually separated before someone gets hurt. They may even form such a close bond that the predator does not see its surrogate mother as prey, but it is better to be peaceful. It is also common for the dog not to raise the pet as an only pup, but to raise it alongside its own, as if it were part of the litter.

Raylan and his kittens

Raylan became famous all over the world for spending his everyday life as an orphan fostering orphaned kittens orphan kittens. He takes the utmost care of them and can be very sad when the kittens are fledged and find a loving owner. But he is not discouraged for long, because the next litter will follow. She has raised 70 kittens in 9 years, so she is a true professional. Raylan himself was an orphaned dog, adopted from the pound where he was going to be put down. He was a real treasure hiding behind bars.

Tally and the tigers

In 2012 at a zoo in Russia tiger cubs were born. This was their mother’s third litter, but she did not want to raise the cubs either before or at the time, so they urgently needed a surrogate mother. They looked online for a suckling bitch to raise the tigers. Tally came up with the perfect candidate, who then took excellent care of the little orphans, along with her own.

Tarzan and the lion

In 2004 at the Budapest Zoo and Botanical Garden lion cub born in was raised by Tarzan, a dog from a shelter in Siófok. This was necessary because four offspring were born at the same time, which is difficult for a mother lion to cope with. Unfortunately, two of them were very weak and had no chance of growing up healthy. One cub stayed with its mother, the other with Tarzan. Sadly, the lion that stayed with his new mother died after a month, but the dog-raised Roar has grown into a healthy adult and is now living in SanWild Wildlife Park in Africa. Searching the internet, you can find many similar heart-warming stories of dogs raising deer, leopards, foxes, raccoons and other orphaned animals.