After A Hit And Run Killed Their Mother, Baby Opossums Found Are Adopted By The Sweetest Pup
After a hit and run killed a mother opossum, five tiny joeys were left with no one to care for them. That is where Stephanie Maldonado stepped in, and what started as an emergency rescue quickly turned into something much sweeter.
Stephanie, a wildlife enthusiast and professional dog instructor, tried to get the babies to a rescue, but the timing and available space did not work out. So she took on the round-the-clock care herself, feeding the orphaned opossums every two hours while hoping they would make it through their fragile first days.
Then Pretinha entered the picture, and the little family dynamic got even more adorable. Read on.
The opossum joeys were so young their eyes hadn't opened yet
Stephanie cared for them around the clock, feeding the orphans every 2 hours
You can watch a video of mealtime below
The cutest pile of babies
And then came Pretinha
As far as Pretinha was concerned, these babies were HER babies.
That is when the story got even sweeter.
As they continued to grow, the opossum joeys effortlessly took to Pretinha as a mother figure
“It’s very nice to see all the care that she has with them, licking them all the time and nestling them”
“She’s like a mother for the little creatures,” Stephanie shared on her Facebook.
The cutest blended animal family
Pretinha and the joeys are so sweet all nestled together
"My babies"
Watch Pretinha in action as opossum Mama
This is similar to the mother dog who lost her puppies and adopted a baby possum.
All babies are good babies
Peek-a-boo!
When Pretinha went for walks, the joeys would cling to her back, just like they would to their mother opossum
Pretinha seems so happy to be able to play the role of mother to these cutie-pies
All moms know this feel
Thankfully, Stephanie got more than just pictures of the family walks
As they got bigger, Stephanie was able to ditch syringe-feeding and start them on soft foods
Maybe not the most appetizing to us, but that little joey looks STOKED for its feast
That tail touch 😍
Even though they are so small, they are thriving
Look at that grip. 💪🏻
To help nurture their skills, the joeys were given plenty of climbing practice
And they quickly started looking stronger and bright-eyed
As they grew and gained strength, their climbing practice moved outdoors for added exploration
I swear, they only managed to get cuter as they got bigger
Check out that cutie's post-breakfast face.
I love how they fell asleep holding a full belly
They have been given the absolute best chance at life and are thriving.
Thanks to Stephanie and Pretinha, the opossum joeys have come so far from being itty-bitty orphans
Once the opossum joeys are old enough to fend for themselves, Stephanie plans to help with their release back into the wild. But with how much they have bonded with Pretinha, I hope they are able to stay close by to visit every so often.
If you enjoyed this very sweet story, hit that Share button and send this to a friend who will love to see these cuties.
Some rescue stories end with a happy surprise.
Want another “oops, they got in” moment, see how a dog failed at guarding by letting a family of opossums inside.
Share this article:
