A special Christmas delivery; Puppies' births filmed live on police web cam.Byline: By Neil McKay THE eyes of the world could well be trained on a special birth on December 25 this year. With the aid of 21st-Century technology instead of a guiding star, the birth is to be transmitted live over the internet. But rather than a manger, attention will be focused on a puppy whelping whelping parturition in bitches. whelping box a low-sided, open-topped box designed to accommodate a whelping bitch and her newborn puppies. The bottom may have provision for heating. box. A litter of German Shepherd German shepherd, breed of large, muscular working dog perfected in Germany at the turn of the 20th cent. It stands about 25 in. (64 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 60 to 85 lb (27.2–38.5 kg). puppies is scheduled to be born on Christmas Day, and a specially installed camera is to capture the event "live" and transmit it to the public via the Durham Police force website. The "puppy cam" is already trained on the whelping box at The Barns in Spennymoor - the North-East Region North-East Region can be stated when referring to the following:
The expectant mum, three-year-old bitch Becky, has just taken up residence ahead of her "confinement". James Bancroft, the force's web administrator, said: "The 'puppy cam' is focused on the whelping box and will update still images for the internet site every 20 seconds. "When there is movement in the box the camera will automatically focus on it and take a picture. "It's exciting to think that potentially the birth of the pups could be seen by people across the world." Both Becky and the sire, a working Northumbria police Northumbria Police is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the areas of Northumberland and Tyne and Wear in England. The service is the sixth largest police constabulary in England or Wales. As of April 2005, the current Chief Constable is Mike Craik. dog, are pedigree German Shepherds. The litter is Becky's first and she is expected to give birth to at least four puppies. Dog training supervisor Paul Hedges said: "Becky is kept as a pet by one of the force's serving officers and is no stranger to The Barns, so she should be quite comfortable in her surroundings. "While her 63-day pregnancy will be full-term on Christmas day it's possible the pups could arrive a day or two either side." The litter is the force's fourth since it resumed its breeding programme. One of the pups is destined to become a Northumbria police dog while it is hoped the others will go on to serve with Durham. Mr Bancroft explained: "Becky is herself a product of the force breeding programme and has the ideal temperament to produce offspring capable of becoming working police dogs. "The use of the 'puppy cam' is a first for Durham Constabulary Durham Constabulary is a Home Office police force with the responsibility of policing the non-metropolitan county of County Durham and the unitary authority of Darlington. The force covers the 10 square miles (26 km²) of the county which has a resident population of 870,000. and we hope that in the future other force events will be transmitted in a similar way via the website." The website address is www.durham.police.uk CAPTION(S): EXPECTING: German Shepherd Becky. |
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