As a rule, heritage breeders don’t love surprises in the whelping box, but surprises do happen. Still, we’re betting that the very last thing breeder, Louis Sutherland, expected his Golden Retriever, “Rio,” to whelp this past week was a green puppy.

Named, “Forest” by the surprised breeder, the one-of-nine puppies born in the town of Golspie in the Scottish Highlands made news around the world.  Local newspapers reported that green puppies have been recorded only three times before in the world, but ask experienced breeders, and they’ll tell you it’s not all that rare. The cause is biliverdin, a bile pigment found in the placenta that can stain a puppy’s coat green when it mixes with amniotic fluid. The pup’s “greenness” has already started to fade and is expected to be completely gone within weeks. Good thing. We hear it’s not easy being green.