We purchased a puppy from a breeder who had the stud and pick of the litter from another breeder because of a stud service. He is 7 months old and already has hip displaisa. Our vet has put him on restrictions and supplements. Contacted the breeder for advice and was told we needed to contact the females breeder and that we should be entitled to a refund. We have never encountered this before and have no idea what usually happens with the breeders in this kind of situation.. Is a refund what usually happens? Or is it tough luck? We did our research on the health of both parents.. Mom has excellent hips and dad has good... Both breeders knew we purchased him with the expectations of training him and doing hunting trial. Please tell us what typically happens in this kind of situation... We have called both breeders and each of them have suggested that we should contact the other breeder..
Re: Need advice There isn't really anything that 'typically' happens in this situation. The breeder may refund your money, or they may not. They are not legally entitled to do anything about it. My pup was diagnosed with moderate hip dysplasia at 13 months old, though I suspect she was showing symptoms long before this, I just didn't want to see it. She too came from parents of good and excellent hip scores. Unfortunately it's just one of those things. The course of treatment for my pup was physiotherapy to improve the muscles holding the hips together. She has now made significant improvement to the extent that we can now possibly consider agility classes, which we were not able to before. Obviously she won't be able to compete or do it to a high level but we can still have fun with her. I suggest you inform each of the breeders that you have spoken with the other breeder as they both have said. However it sounds to me that neither of them want to take responsibility, and unfortunely there's nothing you can do.
Re: Need advice I'm sorry to hear that your pup has this problem. Unfortunately, good parental hip scores only reduce the probability that the offspring will have hip problems. They don't remove the possibility entirely. Even with all the testing in the world breeders can't guarantee problem free hips in their offspring. To complicate matters poor hips in a pup can also be associated with diet and exercise (too much hard exercise). It is probably not possible to point the finger firmly at either the dam or the sire as the source of the problem. If the owners bear any responsibility I'd say it'd be the owner you purchased the puppy from. But I wouldn't say that it'd be usual to get a refund.... What is your vet's view? Are his hips so bad that the vet thinks it's genetic? Is your pup insured (dog health insurance)? Did you see original copies of both parents' hip score certification?
Re: Need advice [quote author=Penny+Me link=topic=6374.msg84358#msg84358 date=1401708366] There isn't really anything that 'typically' happens in this situation. The breeder may refund your money, or they may not. They are not legally entitled to do anything about it. My pup was diagnosed with moderate hip dysplasia at 13 months old, though I suspect she was showing symptoms long before this, I just didn't want to see it. She too came from parents of good and excellent hip scores. Unfortunately it's just one of those things. The course of treatment for my pup was physiotherapy to improve the muscles holding the hips together. She has now made significant improvement to the extent that we can now possibly consider agility classes, which we were not able to before. Obviously she won't be able to compete or do it to a high level but we can still have fun with her. I suggest you inform each of the breeders that you have spoken with the other breeder as they both have said. However it sounds to me that neither of them want to take responsibility, and unfortunely there's nothing you can do. [/quote] Thank you for help. What is physiotherapy? We just want to make the best for Noble. He loves to retrieve and it's real hard when brings you something to throw and we can't.
Re: Need advice Physiotherapy is physical therapy to improve mobility and quality of life. It means that a qualified physical therapist does exercises with the dog that will help strengthen the muscles around the joint, among other things. I didnt want to mention it in my previous post, but now that I can see how much you care about Noble (lovely name!) I can say that as I understand it, if you ask for a refund for your puppy and he is returned to the breeder, chances are he will be put to sleep, as they will not be able to sell him on, or use him for breeding. Sorry, that sounds harsh, but better you know that it might be what would happen to him. What does your vet say is the prognosis for him?
Re: Need advice Hi there, welcome to the forum! Sorry you have this bad news about your boy. What age did you get noble? And are you based outside the UK? There are different types of physio therapy (or Physical Therapy) including water based hydrotherapy (supervised swimming) or balance training. I have a dog with HD too. She is now 4 years old, and she was diagnosed when under a year old too. It doesn't affect her badly in spite of her being classed as severe. We keep her weight light, and keep her active but avoid jumping activities mainly. Though she does do some careful agility too. We have her on a regular dose of anti-inflammatory pain killer from the vets, as well as fish oil capsules, and a good quality food. It is certainly a condition that can be managed, and unless your boy is in pain, I don't see why you wouldn't be able to play normal games like "fetch". Gentle regular exercise is good for keeping the muscles strong. I guess you will go with what your vet advises though. Jac (Karen beat me so sorry about duplication - I agree though about the possiblity of euthanasia if you return your pup though)
Re: Need advice As the others have explained what physiotherapy is, I thought I'd explain what we do. After her X-rays and diagnosis we were referred to see the physiotherapist. She spent our first session doing an examination of a Penny and checking her range of motion, flexibility etc. from there it was decided that we should work on core strengthening exercises, as well as exercises more targeted to her hips and back legs. We had three initial sessions over three weeks where she taught us which exercises and how to perform them. Then she was happy enough with Penny's progress to let us go it alone, and to go back to her if we need some extra help or feel her condition is worsening. We just practise the exercises ourselves 10-20 minutes a session, 3 times a week. We were advised that hydrotherapy wasn't needed at this point, and that we should wait (and save our money!) and see how well the strengthening exercises work first. I suspect we may need hydrotherapy in a couple of years. Penny is no longer allowed to play fetch as it puts too much strain on her legs and over exerts her muscles too much. She has pain medication for me to give her when I feel she is in pain or goes lame (I haven't had to give any yet). She also takes joint supplements, an omega 3 fish oil supplement, and we have to keep her on the lean side of normal weight to reduce strain on her joints - this is probably the most important part of the treatment regime for any dog with any sort of joint problems. Carrying extra weight can cause more damage to already susceptible joints.
