Pit Bull: Surrogate Mother for Kitten

Nature or nurture?

After developing a hormonal imbalance, pit bull nurses kitten

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John Patsch/Staff Photographer​

When Christine Killian of Joliet brought home Frank, a kitten, she had no idea her pit bull, Frosty, would nurse the cat.


By Maria Ines Zamudio HERALD NEWS STAFF






JOLIET — A hormonal imbalance turned a 3-year-old pit bull into a loving, nurturing surrogate mother ... for a kitten.

Frosty the pit bull has been nursing a tiny kitten named Frank since June 12, when owner Christine Killian of Joliet brought the 3-week-old feline into their home.

One of Killians' friends found two newborn cats underneath another friend's deck. Killian decided to keep the cat. She already had another cat and a dog.

Weeks before Frank's arrival, Frosty's breasts began to swell.

"When I saw it, I though that she was pregnant," Killian said.

But when Killian took Frosty to the vet, he told her that her pit bull had a hormonal imbalance causing Frosty's breasts to lactate.

The night Frank came to the house, while the family was playing with the kitten, Frosty began nursing him. It was as if Frosty had adopted the kitty. Now, they sleep together every night. document.write("") [img]http://a3.suntimes.com/RealMed...omLeft,Position1,Position2!BottomLeft?x[/img]

The Killians have another cat, Ferocious, who joined the family in October 2004. But they have a more normal cross-species relationship. Frosty treats Ferocious with curiosity, and they chase each other around the house. But Frosty and Frank play with each other and stay close to each other all the time.

"She is the best dog I've ever had," Killian said.

Frosty came from the dog pound in Bolingbrook three days after Christmas in 2003.

"At first I was leery about having a pit bull in the house. Especially because we have a 7-year-old boy in the house," Killian said.

Killian was unsure about having the dog around because of some childhood memories. She remembered how her brothers had a wild pit bull, which was kept outside because it was so untamed.

On the other hand, her husband, Jason, grew up with a pit bull named Pud. Pud was 17 when he developed cancer and was put to sleep. When Pud died, Jason was also 17. So when Jason found Frosty, he wanted to bring him home.

At first, Jason didn't tell his wife that the dog he wanted to bring home was a pit bull. When he brought the dog home, she didn't want to keep the dog. She soon found out how sweet Frosty really is.

Killian said it was easy training Frosty to become a house dog.

"She is a perfect dog," Killian said.

Now that Frank is 6 weeks old, Killian is feeding him cat food along with Frosty's milk.

"Cat's milk is richer than dog's milk," said veterinarian Jerome Zeleny of Frankfort Animal Center.

He said that it would be better if the cat would drink cat's milk or special liquid for kittens in Frank's situation.

"The situation is not ideal. But I'm not sure that it will bring a problem," Zeleny said.

Because the family found Frank around the same time that Frosty had the hormonal imbalance, Killian says that having Frosty nursing Frank was "meant to be." 07/01/06

 

WOW! What an awesome story!

 

weird how things happen....divine intervention??????

 

What a sweet story, nice read.

 

awww, thats adorable... i've heard of a pit bull nursing kittens before but thats cause she had just had her own litter as well... good post

 

Thats a beautiful story!

 

Very sweet!!! Thank you for posting I love the picture.

 

it is a nice story

 

Wow that looks like a vicious dog.

 

What a great story! Phantom is afraid of cats, oddly enough. It's ok though. I'm glad that people can actually write stories that depict our breed so well. The stereotype is a double edge blade. Its good and bad. The story wouldn't have been made if it wasn't for her being a Pit Bull, so I'm almost glad for that stereotype!



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