Guide dog gives birth to an incredible 16 pups!

A guide dog has given birth to a record-breaking 16 pups!

It is the largest litter the sight loss charity Guide Dogs has had in its 60-year breeding history.

Unity, who is a German Shepherd - Golden Retriever mix, gave birth to a litter twice as big as the average German Shepherd's and three times larger than the average dog's.

The puppies, who are now eight weeks old, were fathered by Trigger, a Golden Retriever.

It was German Shepherd Unity's first litter of puppies

It is hoped the pups will have the loyalty of the German Shepherd and friendliness of the Golden Retriever.

The current Guinness World Record for the largest litter is 24 puppies, who were born to Tia, a Neapolitan mastiff in Cambridgeshire in 2004.

Matthew Bottomley, head of breeding at Guide Dogs, said: "A litter of sixteen is incredibly unusual, but such a gift."

Guide dogs are specially trained to help people who are blind or partially sighted.

The puppies will spend a week at the Guide Dogs National Centre

The puppies will now spend some time at the Guide Dogs National Centre near Leamington Spa before being individually placed with volunteer puppy raisers around the UK.

The puppy raisers look after the pups for 12-16 months in their home to help prepare them to be guide dogs.

After that they may be placed with an owner, where the human and dog go through further training so they can create a good working partnership.