China Scene: South

Model, heroic mother is one worn-out doggy

An especially busy dog in Liuzhou, the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, gave birth to 16 puppies in four days recently, leaving the owner thrilled, but worried when four of the pups died from lack of care.

"It took her an afternoon to deliver her puppies during her first pregnancy, but this time it took four days," said the owner, surnamed Wu. He said that the dog's belly was not too big during pregnancy, and no one expected that it could contain 16 pups.