You bring home your gorgeous, goofy and long-anticipated puppy at 9 weeks-old. She's been through her first round of DAPP vaccinations with the breeder at around 8 weeks-old (Canine Distemper, Canine Adenovirus types 1&2, Canine Parainfluenza Virus, & Canine Parvovirus) and is scheduled for her next series of vaccines with her new vet. She had a negative fecal exam prior to leaving her breeder and a glowing bill of health. She is an absolute bundle of squishy joy, and you are beyond thrilled to finally have your dream Frenchie.
The pup's good breeder told you to keep her home and away from other dogs, hands clean and washed before handling the puppy, and to limit visitors who may have come into contact with any unvaccinated dogs. It's just a few short weeks away from puppy socializing time (you've already scheduled her first puppy class at the local Petco) and you have every intention in keeping your new baby safe until she's old enough (and her immunity is strong enough) to start exploring the world around her.
You take her in for her health exam and the second round of vaccines in the recommended window of time for the series, and the vet wants to give your baby another fecal exam (definitely advisable, as parasites are easily contracted and remedied) and she gets great feedback on her health, her temperament and structure. You are thrilled with your new family member and share with the breeder how well she did at the vet.
Fast forward a couple of weeks later. You're feeling confident that your puppy has "almost" finished her vaccines and let your guard down just for a second. You decide to take her to PetSmart to pick out a new harness, and put her down on the ground for a few minutes. You start opening up the screen door to let her mosey in and out of the house. You live in a highly populated area and have seen raccoons, skunks and even rats scurrying in the back alley behind your house, but you're on overwhelm with caring for the new puppy. It's a lot like having an infant home from the hospital: Sleepless nights, constant cleaning and laundry, tending her every need. You're exhausted and the sequestered puppy is a handful!
You wake up one morning and your new baby is not acting like herself. She's lethargic, has loose stools, she feels warm to the touch and she has a bit of nasal discharge. You rush her to the ER vet and they do a series of tests. Your worst nightmare is confirmed: The parvo SNAP test is a weak positive. You question if the "weak" positive is possibly from the vaccine series, which can happen. Maybe it's just a reaction from the vaccine, you ask yourself. The puppy's fecal comes back positive for giardia, as well (a common parasite that is easily treatable but very easily spread through feces, water, food or soil, and may cause diarrhea) and the vet starts her on a round of treatment.
The vet recommends a CBC/preop chem panel, which you decline, along with radiographs of the lungs. If it's a mild case, you tell yourself, why not save some money and treat her at home? You haven't signed her up for pet insurance yet, and the costs are adding up. The vet recommends the pup to be hospitalized as a parvo diagnosis is confirmed, but at-home treatment can indeed be pursued in mild cases. The ER clinic is packed, and you would have to travel out of town to another clinic to admit her. It's all too much, personally and financially, so you decide to do at-home treatment (the vet starts her on antibiotics) and check back if her condition worsens. You make an appointment for Monday morning, unless her condition worsens.
Which it does.
By Sunday, early morning, your baby takes her last breath in your arms. It all happened so quickly, you didn't even have time to rush her back to the ER. She's gone, and your heart is shattered in a million pieces. You can't stop crying, shaking and feel sick yourself. And you are looking for answers. How did this happen??
You call the breeder with the awful news, and you both cry together. You send the vet records to the breeder, and she listens to you as your process the loss.
You blame yourself, the vet (those vaccines must have been the cause!), and ultimately, the breeder. Why won't she just give me my money back, or replace my puppy? I only had her for a month and now she's gone... along with my investment and all the money I've spent on vet bills! Maybe it was the giardia that caused her to pass, and she got it from the breeders home? There has to be someone to blame. I didn't mean this to happen! Why am I being punished?
I am writing this scenario out in hopes this NEVER happens to anyone. Unfortunately, tragedy happens even when we have the best of intentions. There are things I can share to bring light to a few instances in this painful scenario that may help someone not make the same mistakes this family did.
1) ALWAYS follow the recommendations from your vet. Especially when it comes to something as serious as parvovirus. NEVER try to treat parvo at home. Drive that extra two hours to an ER hospital that has room for overnight care. Unless you have vet tech skills like administering oxygen and fluids and have an incubator, DO NOT attempt to do the job of caring for such a sick pup. DO the blood work and the X-ray to rule out pneumonia.
2) DO NOT let your puppy touch the ground of a highly trafficked area until she is FULLY vaccinated and cleared by your vet. Period. Take your shoes off when you come inside your home, change and launder your clothes if you've been around dogs who you suspect may be ill or unvaccinated. Wash your hands before you handle her. Don't take unnecessary risks. It's not worth it, and your puppy will be vaccinated fully before you know it. The weeks will fly by, and she'll be thriving and ready for her socialization classes.
3) Communicate with your good breeder! Get advice from them! They are here to help, but they can't help if you don't make that call or text. Most breeders have in their contracts that they don't issue refunds or exchanges on a pup that becomes sick from a communicable disease after 72-hours while in the care of their new home. We have this outlined in our contracts that we are giving you a healthy pup, but it's up to YOU to make the right decisions in the care you give to your baby. If your pup or dog contracts parvovirus, it can live in your home and outdoor environment untreated for up to 9 years! (Concrete up to nine months, untreated carpets up to six months.) A reputable breeder will possibly help you in placing a new puppy with your family, and potentially offset some of the cost of her by reducing the purchase price, but not until your home is deemed SAFE. They aren't going to give you a free puppy, or your money back, unfortunately. It's up to YOU to keep her safe. This sounds cold, but it's not only a loss for the family, but for the breeder who put her heart and soul into producing this puppy. Mistakes happen; we own up to our mistakes, process them and take full responsibility for them. Your good breeder wants you and your puppy to thrive! Use them as a resource!
4) This one is extra difficult. But it's super important, ok? If, God forbid, something happens to your puppy and she dies, get a necropsy done. Most breeders will have this in their contract that they require a necropsy. Only a necropsy can show you, the vet and the breeder what truly happened to the puppy. And if it's an inheritable condition that caused the pups demise, you are covered in your contract for a replacement puppy. Your good breeder will use this data to help you, and their program. A necropsy is a negligable amount of money (I believe it's around $300) and will give you the answers you need to move forward and to not make the same mistakes. And will help your breeder to support you, which a good one will.
5) GET DOG INSURANCE, FRIENDS! I use Figo, purchased through Costco. I haven't had to use it, yet, however the peace of mind that my babies are protected is priceless. I like to joke that Grand Champion Bucky's baby-maker testicles are insured for $10k, but laughs aside, Frenchies are not only extremely expensive to own ($6000 for a nice, health tested puppy from excellent lines); to produce ($1500 per dog, appx., for OFA health testing and I spend about $5000 per litter to produce ONE puppy) and we want to PROTECT our investment. Again, tragedy happens. That's the scary stuff of life, and we aren't making sandwiches on a production line over here. We are breeding living and breathing animals with souls, right? There is no such thing as a "perfect" dog or puppy, and any breeder who tells you so is unethical. Even the highest level of health testing (like I do here with my lines) can produce a puppy or dog with an issue down the line. It's the risk we take in working with purebred dogs. My goal is to mitigate those risks by breeding dogs with the strongest likelihood of HEALTH in all the ways, but that doesn't mean sh*& won't happen. PROTECT yourself and your family member by providing health coverage and a great vet. Educate yourself on ways to environmentally support your puppy and dog ongoing. The time spent deep diving in Frenchie health is time well-spent! I am always up for a discussion on FBD health.. it's my jam. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions, and if I can't help, my network of vet tech friends and amazing breeders may be able to. We want our breed to thrive, and the families who own and love our productions to be an advocate for the breed!
WHEW! This was a tough blog to write. This is my own advice, but please, let your good vet give you your marching orders on vaccinations and parasite control. I truly hope my words prevents a tragedy from happening, either directly or indirectly. No one is perfect, right? We all make mistakes and can learn from them. I hear so many stories from good people who beat themselves up from making a simple mistake with their puppy, or dog. My advice is to share the stories, keep learning and find support from people who you can trust. I'm here to help, as well, and I've made my own mistakes with my dogs and pups... and continue to trust in the process and keep educating myself and others.
Sending lots of love from Glen Ellen; and keep those puppers safe!
Natale
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