A dog has become a surrogate mother to four abandoned Siberian tiger cubs, feeding them as if they were her own puppies.

On Aug. 16, a Siberian tiger successfully gave birth to four little cubs in Qiqihar Lonza Botanical Garden and Zoo.

It is the first time that a Siberian tiger has given birth to four cubs in Qiqihar.

Currently the mother Siberian tiger and the four cubs are in good health. Due to lack of milk, the cubs were rejected by their mother and the zoo tried to find another animal to take care of them.

In order to take better care of the four Siberian tiger cubs, the keeper of the zoo has tried several approaches. According to reports, dog’s milk has similar component of nutrients with tiger milk.

Therefore the keeper found a dog mother to temporarily take care of the four Siberian tiger cubs and milk them.

The cubs were then taken to the dog, feeding on her milk regularly. She may be an unusual parent, but for now, the cubs see her as 'mom'.

The dog mother has good temper and is also more docile to the cubs. She will not do harm to the little Siberian tiger cubs.

The four Siberian tiger cubs need to have milk 12 times a day. And their eyes are not completely open yet.

The first thing for the keeper to do is to ensure the quality of the food provided to the dog mother. The little Siberian tigers still need to have milk for three to four months before they grow up.

In the third month, the little Siberian tiger cubs will be provided with some chopped meat, eggs and vitamins.