New puppy Loki has been so poorly

[52milk]

As some of you know we collected our new puppy last Wednesday.

He is 10 weeks old and when we collected him we did think his coat was a bit dull and he had some flaky skin but he was lively and everything seem fine.

We did not know if he was the right size and had done our research and looked long and hard before buying a puppy but have no idea of average weights /size.

He would not eat very well for the first couple of days and we put this down to being in a new home.

On Saturday he had diarrhea but was still very lively all day/evening although I was still concerned he had not eaten much .

I asked a few friends with dogs who said that the puppy would not eat a great deal and to offer little and often which I did.

They also said to keep him on the food that he came home with until he settled down.

On Sunday morning it was quite clear he was no well at all.

Would not move from his crate,would not drink,play or do any thing.He just whimpered and hid in the corner.

By the afternoon I was very scared as had not been able to get him to drink any water so I rang the breeder.They advised not to leave it to long before calling the vets.

So we took him to the emergency vets Sunday evening where they said his temperature was slightly up and he had very low proteins.They said he was very malnourished and we needed to get fluid in to him by feeding him rehydrate fluid using a dropper.

They gave us a tinned food to try and get him to eat and although the breeder said his worming was up to date they gave him some more stronger worm treatment whilst we were there.They said to follow up with a vet the next day.

So through Sunday night every couple of hours I gave him the rehydrate which he took but by 4 am he was vomiting which went on for 3 hours.

Took him to the vets who I think were more helpful.He said he was badly malnourished and it had been happening for quite a while.He felt there was no evidence of worms and the reason was either an infection or allergy to the food the breeder had given him...which I was now trying to give him.He said we had to get water/hydration fluid and some food into him as he was now quite poorly and would need to go in if there was no improvement in 24 hours.He gave him a jab to stop him being sick and said his weight was only 1.3kg.He also put him on a course of antibiotics.

So we spent all Monday and Monday night hand feeding small amounts of the high protein food they gave us and fluids by dropper.

Tuesday was a bit better although he was very weak we managed to get him to eat and drink a bit more

We have managed to get him to eat 5 very small meals a day for the past 2 days now and he is drinking plenty of water.He is already looking so much better and will see the vet now next Tuesday for a check.

The breeder didn't seem to want to tell me the food name..they had just put it in a plastic bag for me .After pushing them on this they came back with the name Anubis which I can find no information on at all?

All in all it has been a most stressful few days and I am quite cross with myself for not noticing sooner that all was not right.

[merc1_clocks]

 Dear milk, I have followed your journey with Loki & before...you did everything right, & so much research...good on ya.

 That's why I feel so upset for you...BUT...hopefully Loki will bounce back, & never remember this awful time.

 I agree with others...put it all behind you, & love, live & enjoy darling Loki 

[saasher2012]

Sound advise & very true! I can understand that he's upset but you sound as though you want to move on, do so & enjoy!

[saasher2012]

Hi Milk, just out of curiosity. Did you see Loki at the breeders in the house with his mum & siblings or outside on the farm, did you get chance to look around t he farm & did you see any other dogs? Sorry about all the questions.

[52milk]

Hi no problem about questions that is why I posted here to get some honest opinions

We saw him and his brothers with his mum and grandmother in their kitchen.

They live in  huge converted barns we did not see the farm /land where they farm their sheep.

I have to say they were lovely people and very helpful in answering my questions about the breed and their temperament.

They said the grandmother had had 2 litters and this was the mothers 2nd litter and they would not be breeding her again.

They had hoped she would have a girl for them to keep but had  only boys.

[saasher2012]

Very interesting ! Have you a pedigree with him or have you got to register with the Kennel club?
I honestly think that they have just lost touch with what was going on but I'm sure your Vet will give you more information when you see them next, is he eating better now& what are you feeding him , don't forget that if he's had a tummy bug do not at any price give him milk..oh were you able to find out who the sire was?

[52milk]

I dont know any thing about the kennel club I'm afraid so can only tell you what I have here that the breeder gave me.

Thre is a copy of the fathers kennel club owners registration certificate and his five generation pedigree.

There is nothing for the mother.

I have to say though that we did not look for a puppy that was advertised as a pedigree.

When we saw him he was slightly smaller than the remaining pups but did not think this important as he was just as lively and I assume even pups of the same parent grow at different rates just like people.

The food issue is a nightmare for a novice.

With a vast amount of conflicting views on what is right and wrong to feed.

As we had food from the vets to feed him we finished using that first and then I spent ages reading opinions and reviews on all different kinds of food.

The ones the vet recommended are a very high price and we wanted to start him on something we could afford to keep him on but as healthy an option as possible.

In the end we settled on wainwrights tinned puppy food with some of their dry mixed in.These are the ones I found mentioned most with good reviews for the tolerance and ingredients.

He has been on this 2 days certainly loves eating it and so far has had no upset stomach.

His food and water is the only things he is having at the moment and I see no reason not to leave it like that until he is 100% .

He had his first vaccination 2 weeks before we collected him and although he is due his second the vet said he can not do this until he is better and eating/drinking well.

[saasher2012]

Well now that is interesting& for me answers what I was thinking , if your puppy was the smallest it was the The runt of the litter
(horrible word ) & it also answers the reason he was malnourished as he would not have been able to compete with the others for food being smaller & therefore not as strong& instead of supplementing him with extra feeds they I think have allowed him to fend for himself, as to the feed if he is enjoying it & it's not upsetting him & it's what you can afford carry on just take along the pkt information to your vets just to make sure the recipe is fine, also give the information you have just told me to the vet, in case Loki needs extra bit etc. the holding off of vaccination is sensible the same applies to worming , keep us informed of his progress .

[myraandjim]

Milk, this is NOT your fault, you have done wonders for Loki by getting professional help quickly - another owner may not have done so. It may be down to poor breeding, or a tummy bug, or Loki just getting upset by the move, or a dozen other explanations, but there is no point wracking your brain over what has caused it as it has happened and can't be undone. You could go after the breeder who would probably offer to take him back and refund your money but that would be awful for you so why do it? You sound happy enough with the breeders and their set up so not a lot that the council or animal inspectors could do, so that would be hassle for you with no result if you went down that route.

I'm no expert on dogs but have had giant breeds for more years than I care to think about, yet when I took my latest re-home (from a breeder) at 5 years old we went straight down the severe upset tummy route, plus a couple of other problems. All I got from the breeder was that she was ok when they handed her over! After a couple of traumatic weeks and a lot of trial and error it turned out that she is allergic to rice - and a lot of dog foods contain it, I eliminated that from her diet and she has been fine ever since, except for the day my OH gave her some pasta!! The next trauma was when I had her spayed an we discovered her blood doesn't clot - what an expensive emergency that was!

There is no way a prospective new owner can know everything, you did most things right, saw the mother, kept her on the food she was used to, and most importantly got help quickly when things went wrong - so well done you. Sometimes things just have to be put down to bad luck (for you) - but lucky Loki having a caring owner, could have been so much worse for him.

Please keep up updated on his progress and good luck

[captainbovine]

oh poor Loki, but he'll bounce back once his malnourishment is cured. It's a tough start but having a pup is not all like this, he'll recover, they are amazingly resilient.

I bet he keeps looking up at you as if to say "I'm poorly mum!" they have such a sweet look Cavvies...aawww give him a cuddle from me. We had 3 Cavvies all at the same time, they got on so well together.

[cee-dee]

How's the little doggy today, improving?

[rose2008-2008]

Hope hes ok,,awwww.

[captainbovine]

any news today?

[cee-dee]

No news on the fate of the poor doggie?

[saasher2012]

No! I suppose they could be away for the weekend, but I would also like to know how the puppy is.

[ed_blackadder_1]

I think we all would Sam, just to make sure he is OK.

[bitsnknots]

I too hope that the little puppy is alright.