For the first time, scientists have confirmed the birth of rare identical twin puppies born to an Irish wolfhound in South Africa.
The puppies were first suspected to be twins when, during their birth last year, veterinarian Kurt De Cramer at the Rant en Dal Animal Hospital in South Africaobserved that the two puppies had shared a single placenta.
The puppies’ mother had been straining to give birth for several hours and was taken to De Cramer, who performed a Cesarean section.
He delivered the mother’s other five puppies, each with its own placenta.
The DNA showed that the puppies had identical genes on 40 different markers that are commonly used in such testing.