Upset! (kinda long)

[Melissa79]

When I got Boomer he was a christmas gift from my sister. I love him so much and would do anything for him, but I understand why they say dont give dogs as gifts. First I was completely unprepared for him to arrive and completely overwhelmed. My sister bought him tons of things but I would have like to been the one to do that. Also she didnt do much research on breeders and bought him from a breeder in Iowa and he was flown all the way to Boston on christmas eve. The more I learned about the breeder the more suspicious I became. I have thought all along she was a byb and now I'm convinced she is.
I have kept in contact with her and filled her in on Boomer's progress well when I emailed her this last time she emailed me back and just mentioned that Boomer's father had passed away. I was stunned so I asked her what happened and she just breifly sayed that they weren't sure and he was only three years old. Then in the next breath she was telling me about the litter that isdue and the one she already has.
I'm so stunned and I dont know what to do. Boomer is very healthy and has the best personality in the world, Im thinking of talking to the vet in case its genetic. Any advice??? Im still pretty stunned about this.....

 

[Jamielyn]

My advice is to just love your Boomer. There is nothing you can do now about your boxer being from a BYB since he was a gift. If you know what his father died from that might help you some in away to help prevent it happening to your dog. On genetic testing I am not sure what can be done about that. I know there are health test that breeders have done on their dogs to test their hips and other areas. If your boxer is only a pet then I wouldnt really worry about having genetic testing done. Take care of your dog as best as you can and give him as much love as you can and stop worring about what could happen. You do that then you just loose more time to spend w/your dog.

Both of my boxers are from BYB's. I know nothing about my males family history since he was a rescue and my female was a gift from my dh who thought he had done his homework in finding a good breeder. I dont really worry about where they came from now. The most important thing to me is that they are healthy, happy and very much loved family members. I am doing everything that I can do make sure that both of my dogs live healthy lifes.

HTH

 

[Roxy's mama]

if it were me-

I myself would insist for some more info as to what happend, as a breeder she owes that to her "customers" who have pups from that stud. I would also inform your vet that your dogs father passed away.

In any case, I would keep insisting on more info, she owes that to you-

just my $0.02

Sorry you have to have this worry on your shoulders now

mj

 

[KonaKoffe]

Ya it would be nice to know what he died if so you can get an idea of what to test for. It may have been a genetic cause or just an environmental cause like heartworm. I guess the most obvious would be heart problems which you could test to rule out or start addressing. If it was cancer there is not much you can do until if and when symptoms occur. The breeder may not have bothered to get an autopsy.

 

[Melissa79]

Update..

Well she seems to think that he didnt get enough food. They were away and someone was caring for her dogs and feeding them. The breeder seems to think that the female didnt let him eat!!( I thought an unspayed female and unneutered male would not be together in the 1st place) She didnt seemed outraged, as I would have been. She just continued on by saying he was a cool dog that would jump really high.
Im just stunned and so heartbroken for this poor lil' guy. He was only three.
After hearing this I feel so lucky that Boomer is as wonderful as he is, he truly is the best doggy

 

[Luvnmyboxer]

I'd still inform your vet about the young age of the father's death. You can tell him/her the lady's reasoning behind the death, but also that you suspect something else as a cause. That way vet can keep an eye out if anything should ever look suspicious on your dog. Other than that, I dont see anything you can do other than treat your dog the way you have been. Even if something is wrong, we can't always fix it. You might try to probe the breeder a bit more and ask if the dad had regular vet visits or any medical problems that you should know about in future for your pup.

Sorry to hear the bad news, but we know there are people like the breeder out there, too many unfortunately.

 

[KristenElla]

He didn't get enought to EAT? She was out of town and the female Boxer wouldn't let him eat? THAT is the reason?

If it is, then it's animal cruelty. Who wouldn't notice that a dog was starved enough to DIE? She must have been away for a really, really long time becuase it takes a long time for a dog starve to death. Personally, I'd be tempted to report her.

 

[Austin's Mom]

I'm sorry but that sounds like crap to me. Maybe she's just making excuses for a health issue she doesn't want you to know about.

 

[Melissa79]

Yeah the whole thing is making me feel uncomfortable. I'm going to speak to my vet and see what he thinks, but I have no reason to believe that there is anything wrong with Boomer. Hes looks great, he loves to eat, he has all kinds of energy and is so loving. He is the best dog. I dont remeber life without him. I guess i'm just so upset because Boomer is my first dog and also I feel awful that this breeder actually was able to make money off of my sister. I know she didnt know and was really trying to give me a wonderful gift and when she finds out shes going to feel awful too. So theres nothing I can really do for now. Just run around and be silly with my boy! Thanks to everyone for the support and great suggestions!

 

[TugsMommy]

That sounds like total BS to me. I would talk to your vet and let him know that the father died and you don't know what.