Animal Mothers

Being a mother doesn't mean you physically gave birth to a living creature. In fact, you don't even need to be the same species. These stories are about some unlikely mothers:

Photo by Tom Harvey and Keith Philpott

A golden retriever takes care of three Bengal tiger cubs that were rejected by their mother. They stayed together until the cubs were a year old. You can read about their last time together here.

Photo by Johanna Kerby

This little piglet has become one of the litter, in fact, he's "mom's" favorite. His story is actually a children's book called The Pink Puppy

Photo by Peter Greste

This young hippo was orphaned after a tsunami and when he was brought to a reserve the first animal he saw was the tortoise. The tortoise took the young hippo's attention and affection and stride and their relationship was explored by NPR.

Koko's relationships with kittens made the news. She named her first kitten All Ball because to her that's what the kitten looked like.

The real "criteria" for the term mother is the endless love, and giving of self to another. These animals display this in a beautiful way. Happy Mother's Day!