Ashlee Holland is a mother and an avid lover of dogs. She had always wanted to rescue animals and work in the veterinary field.
For her, it’s her instinct to help animals.
So when she came across Ava, a pregnant Chow mix, her heart went out to Ava’s plight.
Ava was on the euthanasia list so the rescue could make room for other incoming dogs. To make matters worse, her pregnant status didn’t change anything.
Either Ashlee or the Midwest Animal ResQ was Ava’s last resort. Otherwise, Ava’s fate was bleak.
As a mother herself, Ashlee felt compelled to save the life of another mother.
“No dogs deserve to be put to sleep for space,” Ashlee said.
After rescuing Ava, Ashlee took Ava to a veterinarian for a healthcare check-up and an x-ray. Ashlee was aware that Ava was pregnant, but she did not have an exact idea of how many puppies Ava was going to give birth to.
One evening less than two weeks later, Ava went into labor.
After a few hours, Ava delivered her first puppy. Then she had four more puppies within the next hour. After a short one-hour break, she delivered two more, totaling seven puppies.
Noticing that Ava’s contractions had stopped, Ashlee thought that Ava was done giving birth. Ashlee changed Ava’s bedding and cleaned her up while Ava cared for her seven puppies.
But little did Ashlee know that Ava hadn’t finished delivering all of her puppies!
Overnight, Ava delivered eight more puppies, putting the total at 15 puppies. 15 is already a large litter, but as the hours went by, Ava gave birth to three more puppies.
In total, Ava ended up giving birth to eighteen happy, healthy puppies!
And how did Ashlee take the surprise?
“It’s heaven. It’s a puppy pile – you can’t get any better than that,” Ashlee said.
Ashlee’s 9-year-old son chose the names for all of the puppies, naming them after past and current Kansas City Royals team members.
“It’s incredible,” Ashlee shared about the experience. “I didn’t save one life – I saved 19.”
Indeed, Ashlee’s selfless heart saved Ava and her precious babies.
Ava was a wonderful mother to her litter as they grew older and bigger. When it was time for them to leave the nest, all of the puppies found kind, loving forever homes.
You can keep up with Ava and other animals in need of rescue on her Facebook page, Ava and her 18 Royals.
Watch her story below.
Please SHARE this sweet story with your friends and family.
