CHATHAM, Ont. -- Staff at a Chatham-Kent animal shelter is pleasantly surprised at the amount of attention one of their stray dogs is getting after she was found helping keep five kittens warm in the cold.

Myriam Armstrong, operations manager at the Pet and Wildlife Rescue (P.A.W.) shelter in Chatham, says they received a call on Saturday, Nov. 16, from someone who found the dog sheltering the kittens on the side of the road.

The group posted about the discovery on Facebook, and was flooded with thousands of views, comments and shares. The story was shared worldwide, including in Australia, Texas and Nova Scotia.

“We’re actually kind of shocked,” says Armstrong. “It really touched a lot of people.”

It’s unknown why the dog, now named Serenity, was protecting the 5-week-old kittens.

“I know we’ve had dogs before that do have that motherly instinct,” says Armstrong.

She says if it wasn’t for Serenity, the kittens might not have been spotted and saved because they are so small.

Armstrong says they have posted about many great animals on their Facebook page, but this one really resonated online.

She added that they are already getting inquiries about adopting the animals. Armstrong is not sure yet if they will be adopted out together or separately.

“We have a couple of applications to adopt them out together,” she says. “We just want to make sure it’s the right home for the dog.”

Due to the amount of attention on social media, the rescue posted an update on Serenity with more details for potential adopters.

“I'm obviously great with cats and would have no problem going to a home that has cats in it,” said the post. “I'm estimated to be about 2 years old so I'm still young and have the energy of a toddler. I love zooming around outside and will run circles around any person or object that is out in the yard with me.”

The post goes on to say Serenity can be quite jumping and needs work on manners.

The shelter staff is concerned about getting backlash for not adopting the dog out with the kittens that she was found with, but the kittens are not old enough to be on their own yet.

Serenity is expected to be ready to be adopted on Dec. 3. Anyone interested can find information on how to apply here.