Help! lab puppy!

okay...i have a 7 1/2 week old lab puppy (hes so adorable) and we think he has tape worms..he eats quite a bit but you can see every bone in his body...and i know labs arent supposed to look like that...when we bought him he had many fleas...but we bought him from a breeder know for good feedback...and his parents werent brother and sisier...can someone help i would hate to loose him(and so would my mom he costed 500$)...we are planning on taking him to a vet to get his shot in a few weeks! thanks in advance!


-Laura

 

Is there anyway you could take him sooner for his shots? If so, you could bring a stool sample to have tested for worms and get meds to get rid of the worms if he has them. Does he still have fleas?

 

BTW, how long have you had this puppy?

 

your breeder should have dewormed him, what symptoms does he have that you think its tapeworm? I would get him to the vet asap to see whats wrong. labs are usually roly polys

you said you brought from a good breeder but some red flags are being raised about that with him being infested with fleas and if he does indeed have worms.

honeybear

 

chances are good if he has fleas he has worms...you mention this being a "good" breeder - I have my doubts considering the condition and age she let you take this puppy home. Most states it is illegal to either sell or give away any puppy or kitten before the age of 8 weeks also they are supposed to have their first sets of shots.

I'd be getting this puppy to the vet pronto...but please do not use any OTC products for fleas or worms. Get ye to the vet this puppy probably needs a good thorough exam

 

yes...we can take him sooner...we will most likley take him tomorrow...no he dosnt have fleas any longer,iv had him for about two weeks....it is not illeagal in texas to sell a puppy b4 8 weeks...we know this is a good breeder because she gave us a list of the people she had sold puppies too with phone numbers...we have called most of them and there dogs are great and healthy...im sorry i didnt metion this befor but he was the runt of the litter....however i have read on lab ack sites and they say even as a puppy a runt shouldnt be like that, and puppies cant have there first shots untill 8 weeks and being only 7 1/2 weeks well itws impossible.

thanks for your advice!

- laura

 

Actually puppies can have shots before 8 weeks of age. In fact the breeder should have already given the puppy a 5 way vaccination at 6 weeks of age. Immunity given by the colostrum in the mothers milk loses its affect sometime around the fifth week of age.
Your puppy should also have been wormed and had stool samples done before being adopted.

 

You got him at 5 1/2 weeks infested with fleas and this was a GOOD breeder? Boy, I'd hate to see a bad one.


Jamiya

 

And giving away the RUNT at 5 1/2 weeks no less-- that usually the pup that needs to stay with the mother the longest. I'm sorry, but a good breeder would know NOT to give the pups away before 8 weeks old. It's water under the bridge now I suppose, but you might want to inform your breeder of the pup's problems, ask why he was not given his first shots and why it was given to you 2 1/2 weeks earlier than the recommended age for separating pups from their mom.

 

Ok, BIG RED flags here!!!
One, they shouldn't have fleas, two if he's 7 wks old, He should have already had a round of shots, and been completely de wormed!!!!

I highly suggest taking him to the vet and sending the bill to the breeder!

 

Ok, BIG RED flags here!!!
One, they shouldn't have fleas, two if he's 7 wks old, He should have already had a round of shots, and been completely de wormed!!!!

I highly suggest taking him to the vet and sending the bill to the breeder!


And giving away the RUNT at 5 1/2 weeks no less-- that usually the pup that needs to stay with the mother the longest. I'm sorry, but a good breeder would know NOT to give the pups away before 8 weeks old.

ditto on both.


I am sorry but yuo got taken, $500 for a runt. well whats done is done, you need to get your pup healthy.

Please take your vet bills to the breeder nad make them reimburse you. IF this breeder is so good, you should have a contract covering the health of the puppy and is shoudl state they will pay for it.


Good luck with your pup and let us know what the vet says.

honeybear

 

I don't know much about puppies but I do know when I went around looking for mine I asked ALOT OF QUESTIONS. A dog is like a child you are not going to take a child in your custody sick so why would you have done that and paid $500 at that for a sick dog. You need to take him to a vet immediately. He needs it poor baby. I hope it works out for you, God bless, Luann.

 

Okay... I have two runts and they're all that and more... I would gladly pay $500 for a runt... THere are all kinds of reasons for a dog to be a runt and most of the time a runt is simply the last dog to be conceived in a litter and had a shorter time in the womb... So it doesn't mean a runt is any less in quality and should be given away cheaper...

I'm sorry I took offense at the couple of comments aout paying for a runt... now the pup should not have been sent off at 5 1/2 weeks especially because of the runt thing...

Folks... Please don't go on and on about paying so much for a runt as if the runt is of lower quality than the rest of the litter... that's just ignorant.

 

Okaye Sarah, I wont be igorant, I just remember when we got Jake tthe breedr had another litter and the runt was the only one left, she looked so sickly, I wanted to take her home too. so thats my picture of a runt, not just smallest of the litter because they most likely will be the same size when they grow up and healthy

honeybear

 

I feel the same thing about runts. They are in no way less quality than the rest of the litter. THey 9 times out of 10 grow to be the same size as the rest of the litter. But Your right, they are usually the last to be concieved and in a large litter, they don't recieve the same amount of nutrients from the bitch.

The runt should have more nursing time to compensate for that.

I've personally never had a substancially smaller runt. Charllottes runt was only .7 of an oz smaller than everyone else!

 

Askari was a tiny Runt... it was touch and go with her for a long time... But now as an adult (a year old) she's bigger than a couple of her sisters... She was also sickly looking when she was tiny (literally) and they were so worried about her they did all kinds of blood tests etc... But she snapped out of it and caught up with the rest of them. My current pup is a runt and she is about 5lbs behind the rest of them but I'm confident she'll also grow up nicely. She's got the best confirmation out of all the females I think...LOL... But I'm also very biased.

Runts need lots of care and also a strong hand as they're so used to fighting a good fight to get what they want and need they can be a real handfull. I know some breeders who don't sell runts and who heavily screen the homes they go to...because of the temperment issues (fighting for life forever etc...)

I hope I didn't sound to angry...it just bugged me is all...LOL

Askari's baby pic (she's contained in a Bowl)


and here's her pic at a year:

 

what a pretty dog, is that the boerbel sp? you have. I think if you have a sickly runt or any pup for that matter, it needs to stay with the breeder until it is healthy. My thing is you dont sell a sickly runt or a sickly regular pup for $$ and not all until they are proven healthy. I have no problem buying the smallest of the litter as long as its healthy.

honeybear

 

Wow Sara- the difference is amazing!!! What an adorable little girl, and so tiny! She has grown to be a very healthy looking dog I don't think people were trying to say that runts were any less quality, just that there often exist health and other problems from being the most deprived, like you said they recieve teh least attention from the mother, have to fight for life, etc. Given the likelyhood for extra time and finances that may have to go into raising the runt, that would mean it should cost less, but this in no way means it is of less quality I love runts- they are the "underdogs" literally, and my very first dog as a young child was a runt Golden retriever who was one of the best companions I've ever had

 

Yes that is the First Boeboel I got. She's faulted for her nose color being liver but otherwise is a great example of the breed.

Thanks... I just posted as an example of what people were talking about.

Any pup that is sickly should be sold for less and only sold after health is brought to normal... whether runt or not...IMO.