In the summer of 2007, my boyfriend and I decided that we wanted to get a puppy to bring some joy into our life. I wanted a terrier and my bf wanted a doberman. We compromised with a Min Pin. I came across "Dallas" (the dog's given name) on a petfinder type of website that was sold through Old Tumbleweed Farm. I went onto Old Tumbleweed's website, and saw the other puppies they had. The Breeding network seemed legit. I sent the woman several emails and spoke with her on the phone. We went back and forth, and she answered all of my questions. We scheduled to have the puppy ship the following week. We went to go pick the puppy up from the airport and could not believe what we saw.
To say that the dog was malnourished was an understatement. At less than 3 lbs, he was completely emaciated. He was covered in feces, his ears were beyond infected, his nose was covered in mucous and his eyes had discharge.
On the car ride home, I took him out of his crate and put him on my lap. As I put my hand on his back, I realized that he was COVERED in fleas. We went straight to the vet. It was about 3PM on a Sunday, so we were lucky enough to find a vet that was open. When they finally looked at him they couldn't believe that we had just picked him up. The breeder had sent all of his paperwork and shots.
He had ear mites, infections, fleas, parasites and kennel cough. It was ridiculous. A few days later his cough got worse. It was really bad and he wouldn't eat, so we brought him back to the vet. They took xrays, and determined that he had a nasty bout of pneumonia. Right then and there they told us that he was probably not going to make it. We had a choice, they could prescribe some medication and we could take him home, or we could leave him there where they could administer an IV and medication. Either way, it didn't look good. My boyfriend and I were completely heartbroken.
We left him at the vet, because they could take better care than we could. The next day under medication and IV's he seemed to be doing better. I went to visit him during my lunch break and he was in a little incubator unit. Over the next few days he got better. I was so angry that I contacted Old Tumbleweed Farm. They told me to send the dog back and they would refund me my money or give me a credit. I was so angry. What would they do with him? They told me that when they put him on the plane, he must have gotten sick. They blamed the flight for his fleas, pneumonia, ear mites, weightloss and infections. The vet seemed to think they just used a scissor and cropped his ears. They were so infected.
I tried to dispute it with my credit card company but lost, even with a letter from the vet and photographs. We were very lucky to find that vet. After a few days there, and a couple of thousand dollars in vet bills he was better. We re-named him Rocky, because he was a fighter, and he made it. Well four years later, our little champion is a not-so Miniature Pincher at about 20lbs. He has tons of energy and is the love of my life. I really wish I had done more research, but now know not to ever trust any "breeder" again. My other two dogs are rescues.
Paul and Cheryl Howard Reviews
In the summer of 2007, my boyfriend and I decided that we wanted to get a puppy to bring some joy into our life. I wanted a terrier and my bf wanted a doberman. We compromised with a Min Pin. I came across "Dallas" (the dog's given name) on a petfinder type of website that was sold through Old Tumbleweed Farm. I went onto Old Tumbleweed's website, and saw the other puppies they had. The Breeding network seemed legit. I sent the woman several emails and spoke with her on the phone. We went back and forth, and she answered all of my questions. We scheduled to have the puppy ship the following week. We went to go pick the puppy up from the airport and could not believe what we saw.
To say that the dog was malnourished was an understatement. At less than 3 lbs, he was completely emaciated. He was covered in feces, his ears were beyond infected, his nose was covered in mucous and his eyes had discharge.
On the car ride home, I took him out of his crate and put him on my lap. As I put my hand on his back, I realized that he was COVERED in fleas. We went straight to the vet. It was about 3PM on a Sunday, so we were lucky enough to find a vet that was open. When they finally looked at him they couldn't believe that we had just picked him up. The breeder had sent all of his paperwork and shots.
He had ear mites, infections, fleas, parasites and kennel cough. It was ridiculous. A few days later his cough got worse. It was really bad and he wouldn't eat, so we brought him back to the vet. They took xrays, and determined that he had a nasty bout of pneumonia. Right then and there they told us that he was probably not going to make it. We had a choice, they could prescribe some medication and we could take him home, or we could leave him there where they could administer an IV and medication. Either way, it didn't look good. My boyfriend and I were completely heartbroken.
We left him at the vet, because they could take better care than we could. The next day under medication and IV's he seemed to be doing better. I went to visit him during my lunch break and he was in a little incubator unit. Over the next few days he got better. I was so angry that I contacted Old Tumbleweed Farm. They told me to send the dog back and they would refund me my money or give me a credit. I was so angry. What would they do with him? They told me that when they put him on the plane, he must have gotten sick. They blamed the flight for his fleas, pneumonia, ear mites, weightloss and infections. The vet seemed to think they just used a scissor and cropped his ears. They were so infected.
I tried to dispute it with my credit card company but lost, even with a letter from the vet and photographs. We were very lucky to find that vet. After a few days there, and a couple of thousand dollars in vet bills he was better. We re-named him Rocky, because he was a fighter, and he made it. Well four years later, our little champion is a not-so Miniature Pincher at about 20lbs. He has tons of energy and is the love of my life. I really wish I had done more research, but now know not to ever trust any "breeder" again. My other two dogs are rescues.