This October 2007 photo courtesy of Trevor S. Cornpropst shows Keller sleeping in Fredericksburg, Va. Cornpropst rescued the all-white, deaf and blind Great Dane puppy at 8-weeks-old. He spent weeks sitting up with the pup he named Keller, in honor of Helen Keller, to comfort him as he settled in. Cornpropst wanted the puppy to feel secure without benefit of soothing coos, facial expressions and other body language. That was back in 2007. Keller is now 120 pounds, healthy and happy, Cornpropst said. (AP Photo/Trevor S. Cornpropst) NO SALES (AP)
An Australian vet has used dog sperm, frozen for more than 20 years, to produce a litter of 10 Great Dane puppies, the Geelong Advertiser reported Tuesday.
Dr. David Hopkins from Bellarine Veterinary Practice in Geelong, about 50 miles southwest of Melbourne, was delighted at the outcome of the IVF procedure.
He said his client Deidre McRae had chosen to store sperm from one of her prized Great Danes, Liebendane Armstrong, in 1989.
Twenty-one years later, long after that dog's death, its sperm has led to a new generation of happy, healthy pups, which are now eight weeks old.
Hopkins said while breeding dogs using frozen sperm was not new technology, it was remarkable that semen frozen for so long could produce such a large, healthy litter.
McRae said she was "over the moon" with the results. She plans to keep some of the pups as show dogs and sell others.
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