A shelter is definitely not the best place for a puppy who deserves nothing but love.

Certainly, some shelters maintain policies that are too cruel when it comes to the fate of “hopeless” dogs. But, fortunately, others are determined to give hope back to hundreds of furry dogs who would otherwise meet certain death.

That’s not to say that life in those cold, lonely kennels, without a bed or a place to lay their heads, is what the dogs deserve. But in spite of everything, these little animals surprise us with gestures that leave us speechless.

This is what love looks like when it seems like no one is watching.

This is one of those stories in which we can really feel what dogs’ hearts are made of, and especially those dogs that have gone through the experience of being mothers. Their love has no limits!

Maggie is an Australian shepherd dog, who was in her cage at the shelter, when she heard some desperate puppies crying very close to her.

They explained in an emotional post on the page of Barker’s Pet Motel and Grooming shelter, a family-run business in Saint Albert, Canada.

“We see a lot of adorable things here at Barkers, but this story takes the cake… Last night, our new foster puppies arrived from Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society – AARCS. Also staying with us at this time is a puppy who was recently adopted from the Animal Rescue Society who had her own puppies taken from her about 2 weeks ago. Last night, the momma dog (Maggie) must have heard the babies crying and came out of her kennel to lay down next to them to soothe their troubled hearts. We put them together for a while and all 3 were so happy!” the post reads.

Everyone at the shelter was left in tears as they witnessed such an act of love.

They take in rescued dogs when there is no more room anywhere else. Maggie had given her puppies up for adoption a few weeks ago and these crying puppies did not have a mom.

There are no words to describe the instinct and love of a puppy who was a mommy.

“In each kennel there is an opening where we slide the water under the fence,” said Alex Aldred, one of the owners.

When all the humans had left, Maggie pushed her water dish and slipped out through that opening.

Maggie walked down the hallway until she found the orphans. Unable to get under that cage, she stuck her body as hard as she could against the fence.

The Aldred family had gone out to dinner that night, but checking the security cameras on their phone, they noticed that a dog was out of its cage. Rushing back from dinner, they arrived and went to the kennel where the puppies were.

Sandy Aldred opened the door and Maggie immediately jumped in with the puppies, snuggled with them and the babies kissed her chin.

“She treated them like they were her own babies,” Alex said.

The next morning we arrived and Maggie was still snuggling with the puppies.

Eventually, Maggie found a loving family and was adopted by the Edmonton Humane Society.

The puppies she had adopted, Hannah and Kari, did very well to feel the warmth of their foster mom as they grew up. They arrived very tiny at the shelter and her love was crucial. Hopefully the two puppies will soon find a loving home just like Maggie.

Even years after that beautiful viral story they were reunited and captured this beautiful image for posterity:

The incredible gesture of this little dog demonstrates all that can fit in a mother’s heart. The day we learn to love a tenth of what dogs do, the world will be a different place.