Family dog gives birth to green puppy lovingly named 'Hulk'

CANTON, North Carolina -- You've heard of Clifford the big red dog, but on the opposite end of the spectrum is Hulk, the small green North Carolina pup.

A few days ago a Canton family knew their German Shepherd was going to deliver a litter of puppies, but they never expected a lime green puppy.

The dog was naturally named Hulk.

Shena Stamey, the owner of the dogs, said everything, except for the color of Hulk, was fine with the dog's litter.

"It was lime green. He was super mad. So, yeah, he became Hulk," Stamey told WLOS.

But why do some puppies come out green?

According to Suzanne Cianciulli, a veterinary technician at the Junaluska Animal Hospital, the sack inside the mother holding the dog contains meconium, which can stain their coat. Meconium is an infant mammal's earliest stool inside the uterus.

"I knew it wasn't harmful, but I still had to look it up again to make sure," Shana said.

It can especially color white fur.

The family even considered naming the puppy Gremlin and Pistachio. But as the green fades, people refer to the dog as Pikachu.

"Mom licks it away until I bathe it and then, I guess after a couple of weeks, it will finally like fade out," Stamey said.

Stamey said the family plans to offer the puppies up for adoption when they come of age.