Dog Has Record Litter Of 24 Puppies

Cass · Post by **Cass** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 7:43 am

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.

See more puppy pics here!

Erinna1112 · Post by **Erinna1112** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 9:50 am

tmbsgrl wrote: AWW the puppies are so cute! Tim & i want a mastiff as our next dog when we buy a house. 1800.00 isn't bad for a dog. We paid 1400.00 for our Saydee. ( basset hound) Can you see it a basset and a mastiff. They would look so funny together.
Yowch....two grand for a dog. I love dogs, don't get me wrong, but I'll pay a hundred bucks to rescue one from a shelter (they charge fees for altering the animal, etc...). There's just so many better things I can do with that kind of money.

persephone · Post by **persephone** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 9:59 am

I saw this on the news last night, they were all so sweet. The title under both the owners names was "Very tired dog owner" :wah:

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 7:58 pm

ScoupeSlave wrote:

i think that they can sense that you saved them and really love you for it. but that is just my two cents on that one

-SS
I gotta go with you on this one. The best dog I ever owned I rescued from the clinic I worked in. She was abandoned because she had mange, (which we cleared up in about a month), and turned out to be the smartest dog I have ever known.

These puppies ARE very cute, but I wonder about some things: Are the owners established breeders? Or just a couple who have a mastiff and bred her? Mastiffs of this type are uncommon and look really "neat" which is why people want them. (A VERY bad reason to own a pet.) But are they determining who the puppies go to? Are they show quality dogs, or pet quality? It does seem a shame to be spending so much on a dog when there are over a million being put to sleep every year.

And that will be the extent of my preaching on the responsibilities of pet ownership.

Hey, Cassie...great pics!!!