JaCaMa

After talking to all 3 veterinary surgeries, it appears as though Shelby's death was a result of an initial mis-diagnosis of an abscess at her suture line, by the original regular treating vet - which led to her more serious condition of the diaphragmatic hernia being missed by the subsequent vets. I am so shattered by the loss of my sweet girl, and knowing it may have been prevented makes it so much harder to bear. I have been invited to sit down with the last vet & go through all the notes, results & treatments given, and will make a decision from there, on whether to lodge a formal complaint or just let it go... Thank you everyone for your kind words, it means a great deal to me during this difficult time x

My absolutely beautiful 10mth old Weimaraner was snatched away to run over the rainbow bridge on Wednesday morning. I am absolutely crushed by the pain of losing her. She was a perfectly healthy, spirited girl who was adored by all her knew her. She started vomiting on Tuesday afternoon around 5pm, and by 9pm it had progressed from bits of grass to bile and a milky fluid. Her gums had gone pale, and her lips & nose were clammy so I raced her to the emergency vets. They queried whether she had eaten something (rocks/twigs) as she loved to chew anything she could, but quickly ruled out that as well as poisoning from a toad etc. She had tachycardia HR200 at times & they said they would stabilise her, offer supportive treatment i.e. fluids/analgesia, run some tests: bloods, x-ray & U/S and keep me updated. I left around 10:30pm. At 3am they phoned to say she had deteriorated, they hadn't worked out a cause as yet & were doing more tests, her lactic acid levels were steadily rising despite their treatment. At 6:30am I phoned and they asked me to be there by 8am to have her transferred to the specialist vet service, which I did. When I got there they let me see her, she was incapable of lifting her head or opening her eyes as she was on morph & methadone, but her giant whip of a tail beat gently again the wall when I hugged & kissed her. I told her they were going to make her all better & I would see her soon. They said they would do a more intensive U/S, stabilise her BP & then commence exploratory abdominal surgery as there HAD to be a cause for her condition. They would phone me when they'd opened her up & advise me of what was going on. I left around 9am. At 11:30am they phoned me to advise me Shelby had died shortly after being anaesthetised, and despite their efforts, she could not be resuscitated. They requested an autopsy as they were so stunned by what happened. I consented & they phoned me that afternoon with the results. They said they were even more stunned by them and couldn't believe what had caused her eventual death. There was a tear in her diaphragm and the top lobe of her liver had slipped into the tear & been caught there, so the liver tissue was trapped, and had become necrosed - they estimated this had occurred approx 2 weeks ago due to the level of necrosis. When they anaesthetised her, they rolled her onto her back to commence the surgery, her trapped liver landed on her vena cava, which in turn cut off the blood supply to her heart, causing a cardiac arrest! I asked the vet how she could have possible sustained a tear to the diaphragm and she told me its can happen via birth defect, surgically or due to trauma such a a car accident. I had Shelby desexed 2.5weeks prior at her usual vet, and this was the only significant recent event - certainly no trauma - though she was an active, rowdy pup & keeping her quiet with the elizabethian collar on whilst she recovered from the desexing was a challenge - she managed to destroy 3 of them! I also took her her back 6 days post surgery as I was concerned about the suture line as it was inflamed, red & very lumpy. They told me it was fine, no infection & to keep her quieter as she was obviously being to physically active. Then I took her back on day 10 to have the sutures out & again questioned the state of the suture line, as it still looked the same. They advised me it was fine, and as long as there was no discharge, and she wasn't vomiting or lethargic it wasn't infected, so I took her home on analgesia. I only mention all this, as the autopsy also showed the whole surgical area inside was infected and septic, and whilst the treating vet didn't feel it cause her actual death, it would have not been helping the situation at all. She also said its possible that the tear occurred during the desexing surgery, though it could not be proved Words cannot convey how horrified I am at this series of tragedies that led to her death. I feel like it wasn't just a tragic accident. I know nothing can bring her back, but it's so unfair, and she didn't get a great full life, filled with love & memories, and I'm left with a gaping wound of my own, which feels like it will never heal. I feel like I failed her, I'm her mum & should have protected my girl sorry for the novel, but I know you fellow dog lovers will understand my pain. Thanks for reading.

Thanks sheena, thats a lovely thing to say! Thanks for the tip Haredown Whippets, much appreciated

Hello DOL'ers , I see this thread has grown cobwebs, but if I could drag it out to ask a few things...1. Should I tell a breeder early on that I'm looking for a companion dog, not to breed or show? Or is that irrelevant? 2. Because I am not into showing dogs, does it matter if I'm not all clued up on titles & awards etc... My priority is a great breeder who loves animals & breeds happy, healthy pups. 3. Is it appropriate to say if you are looking for a boy or girl pup? I'm quite happy for a breeder to actually pick a pup they think would suit our family best, but would like to pick the sex myself, although would take any advice onboard also. I have read alot about buying a pup from a breeder, but advice in books & online seems to vary a bit, and you all seem to be a knowledgable bunch, so thanks in advance for any replies :) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Aloysha, I've had no real luck finding out the 'general' cost of a (weim) pup (other than US info) you're right, there doesn't seem to be a guide of any kind, and even if there was, I expect there would be very large variances in price anyway. But it certainly is a consideration when buying for alot of people I would think :) Skysoaringmagpie, I'm fairly sure my email is working well, as I use it several times daily & am receiving my usual influx, but thanks for the thought :) sheena, I feel kinda uncomfortable bluntly asking people for prices, but at the same time really want to know for budgetary purposes. Do you think it would be acceptable to ask other Weimaraner owners for a general 'price guide' I'm so confused, because at the other end, is there are ceiling price on a pup? Thanks WeimMe (love the name!) I really look forward to having a weim doggy family member one day, if I manage to successfully get through to that stage without scaring off every breeder around with my bumbling & 'newbiness' Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for that link sheena, yes I prefer a written record also, as drummed into me by my IT hubby... And it's helps with memory & that old age stuff too haha Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for the Weim thread link mr.mister! And I surely will be a prolific photo sharer lol Mmm, I think I'll have to investigate the transport issue more thoroughly Allerzeit & Rebanne. My home looks like a dog book library at the moment, can anyone recommend a useful Australian book on purchasing a pup, if there is one? Mine are all American. Cheers

Oh my! That's adorably cute :)

Good Evening DOL's mr.mister - I am looking for a Weimaraner pup. showdog - I think i'll give it a few weeks before recontacting the breeders i haven't heard back from. minimax - It really isn't my intention to come across as 'desperate', more like very keen to show I am a serious, comitted buyer and not a tyre-kicker (the doggy equivalent ). I certainly don't want to offend or annoy any breeders or purbred dog owners, its a whole new world to me & I sure do have alot to learn, thank you for your advice. sheena - I absolutely expect to go on a waiting list, and am most happy to wait, I especially want to deal with a reputable breeder that doesn't churn out pup after pup. Finding out about the horror of puppy mills & byb's is what started me on this journey to begin with. Alyosha - Thanks for enlightening me in regards to breeding being a hobby. I naively assumed that it was the main 'job' of a breeder, given that its so time consuming. When you contact a pet shop or shelter, a response is quick, so for a noob like myself, who has researched the breed til I'm cross eyed, it pays to learn more about the breeder-buyer process, though in my own defense, this thread was the 1st detailed information of 'etiquette' I've come across. Oh, and also about being away for shows - hadn't even considered that *insert embarrased face* To those that mentioned buyers & the price of a pup, I did attempt to find out prior to even beginning to make inquiries, to ensure a Weim was within my financial means. I actually had alot of difficulty finding any info relevant to Australia anyway. I too agree that trying to barter a pup price is out of order!, and would certainly never even think of trying that. Obviously I would like to know how much to expect to pay, as others have said, there is no point in going through the process and wasting a breeder's time if the price is not within the budget. Also, from my perspective, knowing the price differences between breeders allows me to become better informed as a buyer, for eg: is it the same price for all pups in a litter? or does it vary? Why is one breeder twice the price of another? etc etc. I also need to be able to factor in transport costs if its interstate, from the limited info I found, it would cost as much as the cost of buying the pup to transport it! Thats a pricey exercise. showdog - its exactly as you said, you really can get lost out there as a buyer. Bjelkier - Thanks for that explanation,it gives me an appreciation for how busy breeders can get. I sure hope if I get to chat with some breeders, I don't ask too many stupid questions I have spent alot of time being sure this is the breed for our family, and am just very eager to get the 'journey' started. Thank you to everyone who posted a reply, I am grateful for you taking the time to respond, and thanks also for the advice & information. I feel completely prepared (well as much as one can be) for the 'doggy' side of things, but have definitely misfired on the breeder side of things. I hope i haven't 'blacklisted' myself by speaking out, that would be a shame, as I feel confident that I have the capacity to be a great Weim human mumma. I joined this forum to find support & advice, info etc, and already its been helpful. If anyone has any further advice, suggestions, or even head slaps(joke) please don't hesitate to contact me, especially if you are familiar with Weimaraners or breeders etc. On an awesome note, I have now heard back from 2 breeders which is a fantastic start! Cheers

Hi Karly, thanks for your reply. I did phone (and email) all the breeders that had ph numbers on their website/club site, and left a message, but nobody has got back to me. I completely understand that buying a pup from a breeder can be a long process, and I'm most certainly patient enough to wait for the right time/pup/breeder, but it has to start somewhere, and my point is if any of them don't even bother returning my ph call, the ball cant ever start rolling if you know what I mean. I'm just so dissapointed by the whole situation. I spent so long researching to even get to this point, and then to hit a brick wall straight up. And it's not like you can go 'oh well, I'll go to another breeder', because there isn't any. I don't know if its just me, or if this a common theme. The people I know who own purebred dogs have never had issues with opening a dialogue with breeders, and throughout my research, I never came across anything that would suggest I would have a problem either. In fact I joined this forum in anticipation of being able to chat & share with people the journey of getting & having a purebred dog. I have looked as far away as I could manage to travel, a friend did her buying by email/phone & had her pup transprted to her. It isn't really my style though, I would prefer to meet a breeder in person, meet the dogs & look at the environment etc, not too mention I don't have the time or finances to manage interstate expeditions. I don't know what else I can do?

Hmmm... Well this is an interesting thread, I wish I had come across this last week, when I contacted multiple breeders to enquire about the process of buying a puppy from them. I have only ever owned dogs from the pound or a pet shop, and didn't realise there was an etiquette to be followed when dealing with a breeder. It does explain why I haven't heard back from a single one, despite also following up with a phone call several days after sending an email. After doing research, I discovered that the breed I want is not overly common, so thought by contacting the breeders from the official 'clubs' list (5 here in SE Qld) - and making contact with them, (via a brief email or online form) I would then have a better idea of how long the process would be, and what that process ACTUALLY is. I'm actually extremely dissapointed that despite all the time I've spent reading, talking to owners of the breed & waiting patiently for the best time for my family to welcome a new member, it seems that it may not be a reality after all. I really don't think it should be too much to expect a breeder get back to me with the basic information. I don't expect a puppy in my lap within the week, but do think I should be able to know are they currently breeding?, is there a current litter?, how long is the waiting list generally? What is the process for approval? What is the history of the pups heritage, health history etc... Anyways, a lesson learnt I guess. I really do feel sad about it all, and if this usual practice, then I'm probably not the only one who will go back to a pet shop or shelter for a pup, which is ironic, because my not wanting to support byb's or puppy farms is what got me looking at purebred dogs to begin with