Marjory Miller, Berta’s nine-year-old owner, admits that Berta appears to be interested in only two things: eating and sleeping. To Marjory, the docile canine seems entirely unremarkable. Then, one spring day, Berta begins to behave strangely. When newborn chicks arrive at the Miller home, Marjory finds Berta with her head in the chick box, washing the tiny creatures. The dachshund’s maternal instincts intensify towards young animals around the Miller acreage. Berta upsets Mama Pig by getting too close to the piglets, kidnaps a baby kitten from the house across the road, and then adopts an orphaned lamb named Patrick.

Elsa Myotte’s charming black-and-white pencil drawings open each chapter and nicely complement Lottridge’s refreshingly gentle, low-key story, although the animals are more expressive and appealing than the human subjects.

Does the author have the right to dub Berta a “remarkable” dog? Animal lovers will likely contend, that while Berta doesn’t pull babies from burning buildings or perform astounding tricks, she is remarkable, simply by virtue of who she is: an endearing companion to her human friends and doting mother to all infant creatures, regardless of their species. Well-paced for young readers and competently written, this charming animal tale resolves in a satisfying conclusion.