Village Steps Up to Raise Litter of Puppies After Their Mom Dies in Childbirth

A litter of puppies is thriving today after their mother died in childbirth.

Nutmeg the springer spaniel was rushed to the vet after she experienced complications while in labor. Tragically, she died, leaving her 14 babies orphaned. 

Owner Christine Conner immediately stepped up to care for the dogs, who needed round-the-clock care, including feeding every two hours. But she didn't have to do it alone. After posting about the puppies on social media with hashtag #doingitfornutmeg, her village jumped at the chance to help. 

“People started ringing up, saying, ‘Can we help,’ and I said, 'Sure, come on over,” Conner told SWNS.

Conner said her family got so busy caring for the dogs, they forgot to care for themselves.

“There’s a church kitchen in the village and they fired up and started sending us meals because we didn’t have time to shop," Conner said. 

"Pretty soon we had a rota drawn up and people filled their names in and came and helped the puppies," she added.

Three of the puppies died but 11 made it past those tough initial weeks and are doing well. At this point all of the dogs have been adopted except for one, which Conner kept for herself.

She stays connected to the other dogs through Facebook, proving the adage “it takes a village” true.

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