When a stray dog in Puerto Rico gave birth to a litter of puppies, two of them looked very different from the others.
They were mostly hairless, had tiny little eyes, and big smiles.
A local rescue volunteer named Luis tried to find the mom to get her spayed, but that was just the start of an interesting chain of events.
Keep reading to find out what happened next!
Hide and Seek
Luis, from We Love Satos, managed to bring in the two puppies, but he was having trouble finding their mother and father.
He put the two puppies in foster care with a woman in the US, named Kaylee, who had a dog very similar to them named Chupey.
While these three dogs looked very different from most dogs, Luis knew they were all deserving of just as much love!
However, he knew that their genetic differences would lead to difficulties later on in life.
So, it was important to find the mama as soon as possible and make sure she wouldn’t have any more babies.
And Then There Were 4
Luis eventually caught the mother!
While she had already had another puppy like her others before Luis could bring her in, she and her puppy, named Nina, were safe now in his care!
Luis discovered that Nina and the other dogs have a rare chromosomal abnormality, but he wasn’t able to figure out much more than that.
Supposedly, there are only 6 dogs like Nina in the world.
He hoped that vets would be able to figure out more about the pups to help them with whatever struggles that might come from their genetic differences.
Even more important than that, Luis wanted to make sure he found the perfect homes for Nina and her brothers.
A Secret Admirer
Around the same time, a woman named Emily was following the story.
Emily had already seen Nina’s brothers on Chupey’s Instagram and had fallen in love with them.
However, by the time she reached out, both of the boys had already found their forever homes.
Emily was still interested in learning more about these dogs, however, so Kaylee started sharing everything she knew with her.
Then, when Luis called up Kaylee looking for a foster or adopter for Nina, Kaylee immediately knew who would be the perfect human for her: Emily!
“I saw her pictures and thought she was so adorable,” Emily said. “I knew there was going to be a bunch of people who wanted Nina, so I was really excited that I was chosen.”
The next step was to fly Nina from Puerto Rico to her new home!
Slow and Steady
Emily and her dad went down to New York City to pick up Nina, and then drove her back up to her new home in Upstate New York.
For safety purposes, Emily waited until they got to their hotel for the night to let Nina out of her crate.
“Nina was very skittish when we got her,” Emily shared. “She was very scared and was growling a little, which was very understandable.”
When they first opened Nina’s crate, it took the poor girl over an hour to gather the courage to step out.
“We weren’t able to pet her, but she did eventually come out and let us clean her up from her travels,” Emily said.
Emily was willing to give Nina all the time she needed to realize she was safe.
An Important Breakthrough
At the hotel, they made a bed of pillows for her because they assumed she wouldn’t sleep in the bed with them.
“At 3 in the morning, I woke up to Nina at my feet sniffing me,” Emily said. “She was just sitting there at the edge of the bed with her cute little smile.”
Emily tried to contain her excitement as she went back to sleep, hoping that in the morning Nina would be relaxed enough to start trusting her.
“By the morning, she let us put her sweater and harness on,” Emily said. “We had won her over, and she’s been super loving ever since.”
From this point on, Nina’s life was only going to get better!
Nothing But the Good Life
It only took a few hours for Nina to warm up to her new forever home.
She became fast friends with Emily’s other dogs, and was playing like part of the family in no time.
Emily also adjusted to Nina’s unique needs very quickly.
“She needs to wear sweaters to protect her skin and keep her warm,” Emily said. “I also moisturize her lips regularly so they don’t get too dry.”
It’s only been a few months, but it already feels like Nina has always been a part of the family.
“She likes to drive her siblings crazy,” Emily said. “She sits right on top of them. It’s like she always has to be partially on top of someone when she’s sitting down.”
She loves to run around and around until she zonks out on the couch with Emily.
Emily can’t wait to make each day better than the last for sweet little Nina!
Click here to follow Nina on Instagram and see more of her smiling face!