Dalmatians are a favorite of Cecilia Lanton Bunkergot of Ballarat, Australia. In fact, her daily life revolves around the lovely breed. She works with them to train, perform, and compete. She has also owned CC Dalmatians, a high-end breeding program that has produced numerous titled and champion dogs, over the past 27 years.
Cecilia, in other words, knows everything there is to know about Dalmatians. When she decided to have a litter, she chose Miley, a titled show dog, to be the first mother. Astro Wonder Boy was chosen as the stud after much deliberation.
Miley was mated, and Cecilia, like all reputable breeders, treated her with veterinary care throughout her pregnancy. Miley’s vet estimated that she will have three puppies based on x-rays and ultrasounds. Cecilia became aware that the count was inaccurate as time progressed. Miley, on the other hand, remained healthy and happy, which was the most essential thing.
Miley began labor when her pregnancy ended, and Cecilia enlisted the support of a team of veterinary nurses she had on standby to ensure safe delivery. Miley’s delivery crew was surprised to deliver pup after pup after the three predicted pups were born with no indication of stopping. Astro must have been a true Wonder Boy since Miley gave birth to 18 healthy puppies, much to everyone’s surprise.
Miley was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records for having the world’s largest litter ever. Normal Dalmatian litters have 8–10 pups, and first-time litters are typically smaller, thus this was a major accomplishment.
Mom and the puppies were all fine. Despite her initial surprise, Cecilia was ecstatic with the large litter and, of course, had no trouble caring for all of the dogs as any good breeder would. But there’s one question we’d like to ask her: was she scared Miley was going to give birth to 101 puppies?