The lady that sold him to us stated that she was informed that he had a heart murmur, but she told us that it was a grade 1 or grade 2, which most puppies tend to grow out of. Today I took pup-pup to the vet to be informed that he has a 'significant' heart murmur, most likely a Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA). The only treatment... open heart surgery. Aye. Aye.
So now the dilema... To keep pup-pup, or to take him back to the puppy farm.
When D went to get the puppy he had worked out an agreement with the seller that if we took him to the vet and found out that his condition was worse than previously stated, we could return him and get our money back. I must say, the money is NOT the issue here. The issue at hand is our daughter. WE do not want her to become attached (too late) to 'pup-pup' and have him die at an early age. We try to protect our children from heartbreak where ever and when ever possible, right? The vet stated that he will NOT live a 'normal' life span... by no means will he live into his teens. He should behave like a 'normal' puppy, but as he grows, so will the heart defect. He may only live to be a year old, maybe 3 or he could surprise everybody and live to be 7 or 8, but she does not expect him to live a long life. That being said, we could make the best of the life that he has. If we take him back to the seller, the poor little guy will be put back into the cages in the barn with the 50-75 other dogs and most likely not have much of a life at all...unless somebody else falls in love with him like we did, and can afford the thousands of dollars for open heart surgery to possibly expand the expectancy of his lifetime. If we were to return him, we would definitely keep searching for another puppy and have hopes that THAT puppy would be healthy... but NOTHING in life is guaranteed. Oi Vey!
So, I will leave you with this question... if this was your family, and YOUR decision to make... what would you do???
If it were me I am not sure what I would do. My husband would say take him back. The poor little guy, I am so sorry. If you can't fix him he will most likely die young. What did the vet say his prognosis is if you don't do anything? We have no guarantees on the life of our dogs. We had a Westie from a wonderful breeder who had to be put down at a year old for cancer.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry to say that I would have to return him. It is sad, but I think it is the better choice. You never know how long you pet will live, but in this case you are very likely to loose him at a very young age. Also he will get sick a lot more than other dogs while he is alive. That will be hard to watch and hard to pay for. If it was me, I would just explain to my children that he needs to go back to his first home. I think that would be easier for them to handle than his death. Also, if you give him back somebody may be able to pay for the medical care that he needs. You never know, maybe there would be some sort of a rescue organization that could help him or just a wealthy animal lover. I wish you the best no matter what you do. It is a hard thing either way. I am sorry.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Mary