A unique Golden Retriever puppy has turned heads after she was born with a striking green hue.
Dubbed Shamrock, the pup was born at Golden Treasures Kennel in Florida, where Carole DeBruler and her husband have been raising dogs for almost 17 years now.
Despite their experience with puppies, the pair were bewildered when Shamrock made her colorful debut.
“From the best we know, and I am not a vet or scientist, she was stained with biliverdin from the placenta,” DeBruler told Newsweek. “We have seen light staining many times over the years, but with Shamrock, the staining was deep and did not wash off either by us or by Ivey, the mom.”
@living_the_golden_life/TikTok
The phenomenon of a green-hued puppy, though rare, is not unheard of. The condition is indeed a result of exposure to biliverdin, a green pigment found in bile during the gestation period. Typically, the green hue fades within a few weeks as the puppy’s fur grows out—and it poses no health risks.
Shamrock, now more than 6 weeks old, has gradually shed most of her green tint. And despite initially being smaller than her siblings, the spirited pup is now catching up well.
“Shamrock is over 6 weeks now, and the green has almost faded. You can still see a faint tint where her fur is especially thick,” DeBruler said.
The unusual green pup has gained serious attention on social media, with over 6 million views on a TikTok video by DeBruler on their account @living_the_golden_life.
In thousands of comments, people shared their amazement at Shamrock’s unusual coloring, while others linked her to one particular pop culture reference.
Comments flooded in linking the puppy to Taylor Swift’s song “The Last Great American Dynasty,” in which Swift sings about a “key-lime green dog.”
Swift isn’t singing about puppies exposed to biliverdin, though. Instead, the lyrics reference Rebekah Harkness, the previous owner of Swift’s Rhode Island mansion, who she sings “stole his dog and dyed it key-lime green.”
Harkness was famed for her eccentric behavior , from filling her pool with champagne to clean it to apparently stealing the neighbor’s cat and dying it key-lime green. Swift switches it to a dog in her song, giving the lyric the perfect link to Shamrock in TikTok comments.
Still growing with her siblings under the care of DeBruler, Shamrock’s unique color is fading, but her personality isn’t.
“Shamrock really is a sweetie,” DeBruler said, revealing that she has already found a forever home that she will go to soon. “She will be going to her forever family. They love her so much already,” she said.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to [email protected] with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.