A dog’s maternal instincts took a heart-wrenching twist after she dug up one of her puppies that had died overnight. A video recording from the owner clearly highlights that it is not just humans that experience grieving and loss.
The heartbreaking video from May 2020 shows Kookie, a 3-year-old Labrador cross, sniffing out the shallow grave in the backyard of her owner’s home in Zamboanga, the Philippines.
Before anyone can react, the grieving mommy dog determinedly begins to uncover her dead puppy. Kookie digs through the tightly packed earth until she can reach the male pup. Then, she pulls the pup out of its makeshift grave by a leg. In a desperate bid to bring it back to life, the helpless mother licks and nudges the tiny body.
“The first time that Kookie was pregnant, she miscarried. Now, a puppy has died. She must be devastated,” owner Kaye de Luna is heard speaking in the video.
“It is really sad for her. We could see how much she cared about all of her litter. Even the one that died, she was still thinking about him.”
Kookie had given birth to a litter of puppies on May 17, the evening before the video was recorded. Sadly, one of the pups, the weakest of the litter, died overnight.
When Kookie discovered her dead baby, she began barking loudly and woke the entire household to what had just happened. When they went to check Kookie, they found the smallest of the litter had died. Owner Kaye, out of sight of Kookie, buried the dead pup in her garden in an unmarked grave.
A few hours later, they took Kookie out for a walk in the garden on the leash, but she made a beeline for the gravesite.
Kaye, who can be heard sobbing in the background of the video, decided to let Kookie grieve in her own way in order to come to terms with her puppy’s loss.
At first, Kookie scratched at the earth and soon got her puppy’s scent, which spurred her. Eventually, she removes enough dirt to reveal part of the body and manages to pull the lifeless puppy from the makeshift grave.
The mommy dog then frantically tries to revive the puppy by licking him and nudging him with her nose.
At the end of the video, Kookie stops to look at Kaye, who is crying her eyes out as the heartbreaking graveside scene unfolds.
It is well known that dogs grieve for their owners when they die. So, it is inconceivable that dogs would not go through the same sense of loss and grief when they lose a puppy.
It seems as if Kookie was going through her form of closure by digging up her dead puppy for one more attempt at resuscitation. Like all other female dogs, Kookie is hardwired to lick and nudge puppies after their birth instinctively, as well as when they have passed away too.
Though we will never be certain of what was passing through Kookie’s mind at the time, the footage shows that dogs have a sense of loss and grief.
