A few years ago people began noticing that a dog was constantly staying at the grave of its recently deceased owner. Of course, as anyone would, people put the odd behavior down to the dog being devastated and grief-stricken with loss.

The sight was so moving that someone ventured to snap a photo of the dog burrowed into the grave and uploaded it online.

The emotional photo went viral almost immediately. As the picture circulated and the story with it, one woman decided to dig a little deeper and uncovered something that shocked everyone.

The photo itself was taken in 2015 in Serbia. The German Shepherd could be seen loitering near her owner’s grave. It seemed she spent every waking hour nestled into the grave. She had fashioned herself a cozy, snug little den above her owner’s grave, just in front of the headstone.

While everyone assumed the dog was simply grieving her heartbreaking loss and moving on with their day, one woman did something different.

Vesna Mihajloski is a local in the neighborhood the cemetery is located in. She had seen the heartwrenching picture and couldn’t just forget about it. So, she went out in search of the apparently devastated dog to check on her. That’s when Vesna got a closer look at the dog’s den and couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

The German shepherd dog had given birth to a litter of puppies! Not knowing what else to do, she created a den to keep them safe above her human’s grave, where she felt safe.

Immediately, Vesna decided to take the mama dog and all her adorable puppies home with her.

Everyone had noted how exhausted and worn the dog had looked when they saw her photo online. Turns out, it was an entirely different type of exhaustion than they had imagined. A kind that only new moms know.

The mama dog had been struggling to keep her pups fed and watered. Especially considering no one even knew they existed for some time. Fortunately, Vesna took it upon herself to make sure each and every one of them was well cared for. She took them all into her home and fed and watered them until they were restored to full health.

Raising an entire litter of pups for any dog is quite a feat. This dog is one miraculous mama, though, as she managed to keep every single one of her babies alive without anyone to give her food or shelter.

After Vesna took them all in, the mama dog was able to finally get some much-needed rest, knowing her pups were in good hands.

After receiving regular feedings for a while, all of the puppies began to make a full recovery, regaining all their adorable, pudgy, irresistible cuteness.

Since being able to get the rest, nourishment, and care she was lacking, the mother dog has been able to take the best possible care of her pups. It doesn’t hurt to be surrounded by the love of her rescuer, either.

If it hadn’t been for one woman’s refusal to abandon a dog desperately in need after such a sad occurrence, the world never would have known to beautiful, joyous truth the “grieving dog” had been hiding.

After being rescued from a legitimate graveyard, it’s safe to say that things are looking up for the adorable dog fam.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

We are so grateful that Vesna decided to look deeper into the story behind the heartbreaking photo. Without her, these puppies wouldn’t have stood a chance, no matter how much their mama dog tried.

Now they’ve been rescued from Serbia’s unforgiving streets, each of them will get the chance to find their furever family. There is no question that Vesna is a true hero. We can only hope that, in time, there will be more people like her. Our furry friends need all the help they can get.

H/T: Shareably