POMPANO BEACH, Fla. — When Carole and Greg DeBruler watched one of their golden retrievers give birth in their living room to a puppy with key lime green fur, they decided to give her a name to match.
Shamrock was one of eight puppies in the litter, but her color was as rare as a four-leaf clover.
In the couple's 17 years of running Golden Treasures Kennel in Pensacola, Carole DeBruler said she had seen puppies born with some slight discoloration in their fur. What she'd never been before, she said, was a tint so dark and deep that it stayed for several weeks, even after several baths.
When the DeBrulers took Shamrock to the veterinarian's office, Carole said the doctor had "never seen anything like this."
The lime coloring of the pup's fur is the result of staining from a chemical called biliverdin. Biliverdin is a green bile pigment found in the womb and can stain fur, especially if the fur is a light color.
Carole said Shamrock is currently healthy, happy and has lost most of the tint. But Carole said it still comes out when the now 8-week-old retriever goes for a swim and gets wet, darkening the color and making the green more visible.
Shamrock is set to be adopted by a forever family soon, who can't wait to celebrate her just like how the DeBrulers have.
"We just enjoyed sharing our puppies with the world," Carole said.
The world has evidently enjoyed getting to know Shamrock, too. Since posting a video of Shamrock on the kennel's TikTok page, she's brought more than 25 million views to the page.
There have been few instances of pale-colored puppies popping out green, and it usually prompts those stories to go viral because of just how rare it is. In 2020, an Italian farmer was shocked when one of his dogs gave birth to a green puppy he immediately named Pistachio.
