Katrina Evans’ life just got a whole lot busier, with her home now host to handfuls of puppies exuding cuteness as they snuggle, snore and tumble over each other. Thirteen surviving puppies from a litter of sixteen – double the number the owners and local veterinary staff were expecting after earlier ultrasounds and x-rays.
Click to watch a video of the puppies
The Bull Arab Mastiff puppies came into the world over the 5th and 6th of January. The events transpired as described by Katrina.
Lady Jane, the mother dog, currently in her prime age of four years old, was expecting her first litter as the new year rolled in.
Katrina said the end result was a big surprise for everyone.
“She had an ultrasound done when she was pregnant, and they found five. About two weeks later, we had an x-ray done, and they found eight, so we were expecting eight.”
The magnitude of the litter only apparent as birth was in full swing.
“The day they started popping out really,” explained Katrina.
On the 5th of January at the late hour of 11 pm, the pups initially came out as expected.
Unfortunately, the third puppy was stillborn; however, past number eight, the puppies continued to come, further pushing the expected number higher. By the time puppy number fourteen came along, Katrina decided to err on the side of caution and transported Lady Jane to the vet.
Such a large number of puppies is quite unusual; the current official world record, undefeated in sixteen years, stands at twenty-four and is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. The Australian record, however, stands at twenty-one.
Yass Valley Veterinary holds the local record for the largest litter born in Yass Valley with 18 puppies delivered by caesarean.
It’s believed Katrina may now keep the record for the greatest number of puppies delivered at home in Yass Valley.
Formerly a horse strapper, Katrina suffered a hip injury which cut short that career. Shortly after she bought Lady Jane in 2016 and has enjoyed training and caring for the large breed of dog which she jokes is almost like a horse. In 2019 she finally decided to try breeding for the first time with no intention of becoming a record-holding breeder; “She was just supposed to have puppies, that was all!”
Katrina intends to keep the smallest pup dubbed Storm due to a lightning mark on its back and the approaching storm on the night of the birth. The largest pup “T” with a very accurate letter T mark on its back is destined for the sire owner with the rest available to private buyers.
While this was Lady Jane’s first litter, it may not be the last, as Katrina considers giving her dog one last run with the hopes of a more standard birth and litter, saying “She’ll probably have another litter, and we’ll see how she goes.”
Puppies typically are not separated from their mothers before eight weeks so that they can learn the necessary self-care skills. The puppies are not expected to be ready for their forever homes until March.
Griffin Palen
