Posted on 01/21/2005 6:26:56 AM PST by Rodney King
A Neapolitan mastiff in Manea, United Kingdom, has broken a world record by giving birth to a litter of 24 mastiff puppies, according to a report.
Breeders Damian Ward and his girlfriend, Anne Kellegher, had only been expecting their two-year-old mastiff, Tia, to give birth to a maximum of 10 puppies after a scan from a local veterinarian.
When Tia grew so large she could barely move, the couple took the dog to the vets, who decided that an immediate caesarean was vital. Two hours later, Tia had given birth to the record 24 puppies.
Four of the puppies were too weak and died but the remaining 20 are thriving.
All but three of the pups are up for sale. They are worth more than $1,800 each.
Tia's achievement is now likely to set two records in the Guinness World Records -- the biggest litter and that of the most surviving puppies.
A Guinness World Records spokesman said the current record stands at 23.
Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
Dog breeders suck!
Get this poor animal fixed .
The eyes of those puppies are open! When did this happen? Pups don't open their eyes for a few days after birth.
"You know, I'm going to start thanking
the woman who cleans the restroom in
the building I work in. I'm going to start
thinking of her as a human being"
Puppy alert.
Dogs ping (sorry I missed the last FReepathon; was bogged down with end-of-the-year work and well-extended funds).
A blessed event.
Females 110 lbs Males 150 lbs
If they're responsible breeders who're working to improve the breed, and compete in recognized conformation or performance shows, what's the problem?
They just had a bigger litter than expected ... and with the publicity the dogs will go to good homes at a fair price.
The animals will still fool you - I used to breed and show Siamese cats, and I had one beautiful female that I bred to a fine Grand (for an outrageous fee!) twice, and she presented me with One Kitten each time. We tried her with a different stud cat, and she still presented me with One Kitten. Go figure.
Wow! What beautiful puppies!
I've had some mastiff puppies myself, and even one at a time is a mighty ordeal.
The birth happened some time ago. Those puppies are well along, alert, and obviously several weeks old.
Newborn pups look more like wet rats than anything else (and newborn kittens look like wet mice.)
To the breeders, they are not puppies - They are nothing but cash. With millions of homeless dogs and cats, breeders are putting one of them to death for every cash bag(puppies to the rest of us) they sell.
Yeah, I agree....the breeding mills are a horror. It's a greed and ego thing. I'm too upset to read even more. there are a few people who let their dogs have a litter or so, that seems reasonable...but the puppy mills are ridiculous. It's really the ego of the buyers that drives these "fads". Yuch.
Why is bringing 20 healthy lives into the world a problem? Multiply 20 puppies by $1,800 and then tell me you would fix the mom if she was yours.
I want one.
I feel sorry for the mother dog. Imagine going through your day with 20 sharp toothed puppies chewing on your nipples.
Mastiffs are a noble breed.
They do slobber a good bit though......
We're happy beyond belief with our new "family member" and we would never have found a dog like this in the pound. And we wouldn't have adopted another kind, either.
Our breeder appeared to be responsible, and there was a waiting list for puppies.
For the record, our dog has been "snipped."
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