Not the first time I have heard this claim of innocence by a back yard breeder. Most of them or at least many of them have damned little information or actual care for their pups or the parent animals.
Yes, according to ONG I adopted Joy from, she and her littermates weren't exactly well looked after, so much so that the puppy came to me malnourished and sick. Getting a sick puppy (from a rescue) was a real risk and one I was willing to take, I just wasn't aware of the extent of her illness before getting confirmation from the lab test results. I adore Joy but there's the emotional and financial drain distemper causes.
For now Joy is doing well. The vet came over and was even surprised at how active she is, so I'm going to take that as a possible sign the viral strain isn't as aggressive and even though Joy is still very young she might survive this.
Good luck to you and your puppy.
I had a rescue puppy die from that, it was very sad. He was a small Australian mixed with a smaller unknown breed. He was active and happy, no issues at all until the signs that it reached his brain.
Weird how I went through pretty much the same thing with people I adopted him from. He was supposed to have had all his shots. I didn't even want a refund or anything, I just wanted to let them know since it is very infectious.
Thanks, so far she's been lucky as in it has been mild and mostly limited to her gastrointestinal tract (besides her sneezing fits and discharge from the eyes). But I read neurological symptoms can appear up to 3 months after infection, so I'm not celebrating yet. My worst fear is that it reaches her nervous system...not much can be done after that.
Tomorrow I'm taking her to the vet to get some more blood tests done, and depending on the results we'll vaccinate her soon.
I'm getting another puppy (German Shepherd, just like my last one) in February. This time from a breeder. It was born two days ago, and theoretically I'm picking him up when he's 60 days old, but since he'll have only two out of three shots by then and the virus can shed in the urine and faeces of previously infected dogs for up to 3 months I'm a really worried about bringing the new pup home. Last thing I want is to endanger him. I think I'm going to have to pay the breeder to keep him in his kennel until the pup's had all his shots before I bring him home.
(We really need a
loads-of-money-is-being-spent emoji.
)
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