Devon villagers rally behind litter of 14 orphaned puppies
BBCVillagers have rallied to help a family who found themselves caring for a litter of 14 orphaned puppies.
The puppies' mother Nutmeg died on 1 September after delivering her unusually large litter by caesarean.
Owner Christine Conner said: "It left us in the lurch because we had to feed them every two hours."
After posting photos on social media the people of Tedburn St Mary in Devon set up shifts to help bottle feed the pups, 11 of which have survived.
The Springer Spaniel pups are now six weeks old and are due to be rehomed next week.
Ms Conner thanked all the villagers and friends who had helped, especially with the feeding.
"We could not have done it ourselves," she said.
"People arrived with cakes and hampers and someone even sent us £150, so we're having a party in the pub."
Volunteer Tara Hyson said: "It was just awful (when the mother dog died), it really upset a lot of us actually - we are all local folk with dogs of our own.
"People brought round blankets and teddy bears for the puppies to cuddle into and were helping with feeding.
"My children have loved every second of it. You don't often get to handle a puppy that's so young and bottle feed something so small it fits in the palm of your hand."
