Have you ever had to put your 18-month-old puppy down while he was still wagging his tail and playing with toys? I have. Do you know what it is like to put your loyal companion to sleep while he looks at you with big playful eyes? I do.
On August 27th, 2015 our black Labrador Retriever, Biggby, was diagnosed with Renal Dysplasia after what we thought was going to be a routine visit to the veterinarian. We first took him to a local vet who ran a blood test and sent us to an emergency vet. They then looked at his condition via ultrasound and shared the heartbreaking news that our little buddy had an incurable kidney disease called Renal Dysplasia. This is a genetic disease, usually caused from inbreeding, in which the puppy’s kidneys never develop. The baby-sized kidneys they are born with are the only kidneys they have to function on, and eventually as the puppy grows the kidneys can’t keep up with filtering the toxins out of the dog’s body.
Even the kidneys that they do have are damaged and full of cysts so they can’t produce enough blood for a pup reaching adulthood to be healthy.
Biggby was the most sweet and loving dog we have ever known. Our friends and family shared in the joy he brought and loved him like their own. He really made an impact in our community as well, and was being trained to be a therapy dog. He also attended a day camp and the workers there were also very attached to him. This being said, when I found out Biggby needed a kidney I researched his breeder in order to contact her and see if I could get a healthy kidney from one of his relatives in order to do a transplant. We were willing to do anything. As soon as I typed in his breeder’s name I was appalled at what I saw. There are several advocacy groups that warn against this breeder stating that she is running a puppy mill. I also found out that she failed several of her last inspections with the state of Kansas for the conditions that her dogs were kept in. I felt so betrayed by Petland who told me that he was from a “champion bloodline” and was bred by one of the best most renown Labrador breeders there is. We were also told that he was checked for any health deficiencies and he was a completely healthy puppy. So in order to prevent us from going through any heartache like we have, we were willing to pay the $1700 that Petland wanted for the dog.
After his visit to the emergency vet, we took Biggby to another vet the net day to get a second opinion and to see what, if anything, they could do for us. They ran the blood work again and saw the same sad findings. They also ran IV fluids through him overnight in order to flush out toxins in his kidneys. Unfortunately when his blood tests were checked the again afterward, we were told that his levels had worsened. On August 29th, 2015 we had to put down our puppy. It was the most heartbreaking day of our lives. Because we do not have any children, Biggby was our child. He was treated just as if he was one of us.
Petland Novi Reviews
To Whom It May Concern:
Have you ever had to put your 18-month-old puppy down while he was still wagging his tail and playing with toys? I have. Do you know what it is like to put your loyal companion to sleep while he looks at you with big playful eyes? I do.
On August 27th, 2015 our black Labrador Retriever, Biggby, was diagnosed with Renal Dysplasia after what we thought was going to be a routine visit to the veterinarian. We first took him to a local vet who ran a blood test and sent us to an emergency vet. They then looked at his condition via ultrasound and shared the heartbreaking news that our little buddy had an incurable kidney disease called Renal Dysplasia. This is a genetic disease, usually caused from inbreeding, in which the puppy’s kidneys never develop. The baby-sized kidneys they are born with are the only kidneys they have to function on, and eventually as the puppy grows the kidneys can’t keep up with filtering the toxins out of the dog’s body.
Even the kidneys that they do have are damaged and full of cysts so they can’t produce enough blood for a pup reaching adulthood to be healthy.
Biggby was the most sweet and loving dog we have ever known. Our friends and family shared in the joy he brought and loved him like their own. He really made an impact in our community as well, and was being trained to be a therapy dog. He also attended a day camp and the workers there were also very attached to him. This being said, when I found out Biggby needed a kidney I researched his breeder in order to contact her and see if I could get a healthy kidney from one of his relatives in order to do a transplant. We were willing to do anything. As soon as I typed in his breeder’s name I was appalled at what I saw. There are several advocacy groups that warn against this breeder stating that she is running a puppy mill. I also found out that she failed several of her last inspections with the state of Kansas for the conditions that her dogs were kept in. I felt so betrayed by Petland who told me that he was from a “champion bloodline” and was bred by one of the best most renown Labrador breeders there is. We were also told that he was checked for any health deficiencies and he was a completely healthy puppy. So in order to prevent us from going through any heartache like we have, we were willing to pay the $1700 that Petland wanted for the dog.
After his visit to the emergency vet, we took Biggby to another vet the net day to get a second opinion and to see what, if anything, they could do for us. They ran the blood work again and saw the same sad findings. They also ran IV fluids through him overnight in order to flush out toxins in his kidneys. Unfortunately when his blood tests were checked the again afterward, we were told that his levels had worsened. On August 29th, 2015 we had to put down our puppy. It was the most heartbreaking day of our lives. Because we do not have any children, Biggby was our child. He was treated just as if he was one of us.
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