Bella has previously given birth to litters of just six to eight puppies so her owners were shocked when she produced such a big brood. Owner Hazel Hedges, who helped Bella out by bottle feeding the pups through the night for the first three weeks, said the huge litter had been a big “surprise.”
She said: “This was Bella’s last litter and I think she thought she would make it one to remember. I believe this is one of the biggest litters in history. She usually has an average litter of six to eight and she also always has all blacks and one yellow, so with a mixture of blacks and yellow this was a surprise.”
Hazel, of Labrador City, a registered dog breeder, has been breeding Labradors for five years. She had Bella scanned, but the machine did not pick up all 14 puppies, so the large litter was completely unexpected.
“We did have Bella scanned; they are never right with numbers but we definitely didn’t see 14 coming,” added Hazel, from Wentworth near Ely in Cambridgeshire. “I stayed with her all the time she was in labour and stayed with her for first four nights. With the help of my partner, we helped Bella out by feeding them and bottle feeding them through the night to for first three weeks. They are all doing fine now and are nearly six-weeks-old. They are all reserved and will be going to new homes on June 13. The puppies’ dad, Scooby, is a yellow Labrador and is Kennel Club registered. Hazel and her partner created a special custom-made dog bowl holder for all of Bella’s babies.
She added: “We do have many Labradors but Bella was our first so she is a little special maybe, we have had her since she was around four-months-old.”
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