KETTERING — The Society for the Improvement of Conditions for Stray Animals has plenty of mom stories to share, but two recent mothers made for more remarkable stories than the agency is more often familiar with.

First there is the mom with a whole lot of babies.

And then there are all the babies who didn’t have a mother, until one stepped in.

Eleven puppies

A 150-pound bull mastiff dog had 11 puppies at the end of April. Her owner had to move out of state soon after the birth because he took a new job. He took the mother dog with him, but with his deadline didn’t feel he had the time to check out potential owners for the puppies.

“He brings in a plastic storage container with 11 brindle bull mastiff puppies, 10 males and one female,” said Rhee LaFountain, kennel manager. “They looked to be about 6 weeks old, chubby and squirming.”

An 11-puppy litter is unusual, LaFountain said. Sometimes a dog will have a large litter, but some of the puppies won’t make it. All 11 of these puppies are in good health.

Before SICSA can make the puppies available for adoption they have to have a series of shots, undergo spaying and neutering and be socialized.

They needed pet foster parents willing to take in the puppies by pairs so they could socialize.

“Puppies who aren’t socialized, exposed to new surroundings and experiences at a young age can develop behavior issues,” LaFountain said. “Luckily, once staff and volunteers got a look at them, there was no shortage of foster homes.”

The SICSA staff came up with a soda theme for their names. So they are: Coke, Pepsi, Sprite, Cola, Welch’s, Sunkist, Dr Pepper, Barq’s, Sparkle and Fizzle.

“And finally Dizzle, because it rhymed and we were running out of soda,” LaFountain said.

The puppies are scheduled to be available for adoption by the end of May.

Ethel Mae

Ethel Mae came to SICSA in February along with her seven 2-week-old kittens. Although she was barely one-year-old herself, she was a great mother, feeding, bathing and socializing her brood.

At about the time her kittens were ready for adoption into new homes, a pair of four-week old kittens were brought into SICSA without a mom. SICSA staff thought the kittens would do better with an adult cat than on their own.

“We put them with Ethel and she went over to them right away, she licked them and fed them and we thought, ‘This might just work,’ ” Wolf said.

It worked so well that Ethel Mae is back at it again, nursing, cleaning and socializing a new set of kittens — a group of four one-week-olds found in a boat by a lake.

Wolf has fostered cats for seven years and has never seen such an attentive cat, “exceptional” with her own kittens, and just as devoted to the two other litters.

But she’s about ready to retire from the mommy business.

“She will be available for adoption when she’s finished with these kittens,” Wolf said. “These are the last ones we’re going to give her. It takes a lot out of a cat to be nursing. She deserves a break.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2216 or kmargolis@Dayton DailyNews.com.