Griswald has his semi-annual check-up this week

Griswald has an appointment this Friday for his semi-annual check-up. The appointment is with his primary Veterinarian who has been treating him since I brought him home from Gigi & Lucas' Pet Boutique in June, 2007. When I bought Griswald, I signed a  contract. The contract stated that I had 48 hours to have Griswald examined by a Veterinarian to confirm that he was healthy. The Pet Shop would pay for the exam but only if I went to their Veterinarian, which I did. It was interesting that I saw four other puppies in their Vets' waiting area  that had been bought from Gigi & Lucas' that same weekend. The first thing that the Vet  said to me when he came into the examining room was that the last time he had seen Griswald he was a very, very sick puppy! When I asked him what he meant by that he said that Griswald had Kennel Cough but now he looked to be in great health. I showed the Vet a huge Hematoma between Griswalds' shoulder blades that I was concerned about and he said that it was from Griswalds' vaccination and that it would shrink in time. If it didn't go away by itself, the Veterinarian said that he would remove it for free if/when I had Griswald neutered. At the time of the visit, Griswald was sneezing and had a runny nose. I also told the Vet that I was worried about the Sales Disclosure concerning Griswalds' eyes ..."both eyes deviate latterally" and I asked him to explain the condition to me, which he did by saying that Griswald seemed to be able to see o.k. and it wasn't anything to be worried about. After the visit, I called the Pet Shop owner and asked her why she never mentioned that Griswald had been sick and she said he hadn't been sick . Her associate, Debbie, got on the phone with me and agreed with her. Debbie was very upset with me and said that the puppy had never been sick and that the Veterinarian was in business with them and that he had no right to talk to me about anything negative and that she was going to call him immediately.  I then decided to call my regular Veterinarian and ask her to examine Griswald. During the examine she was concerned with the condition of Griswalds' eyes. They were bloodshot, excessively dry and he had mildly entropian lower lids. The eyes  bulged more than she thought was normal for the French Bulldog breed and she advised me to take him to an Opthalmologist. She thought that he needed to be treated with eye drops immediately. The rest of the exam revealed that Griswald lacked the appropriate muscle tone for his age and weight,  his body was too small and his tongue was too big for his mouth( the size of his tongue was disclosed in The Bill of Sale). He also had an extreme underbite. Griswald had upper respiratory noise and congestion and crust on his nose.  The entire time Griswald was being examined he just watched us and listened to us talking about how puny and sickly he was and he kept making a funny little humming/ grunting noise . My Vet and I talked about what his future might be like and about the Pet Shop and where they might have gotten Griswald and the other puppies that they were selling.  I decided to make an appointment with an Opthalmologist and my Vet gave me some medicine to take home;  Traumeal Ointment for the Hematoma ,  Aroma Dog Cough Drop for the congestion and Immu G-O for Griswalds'  immune system. I left the Vets' office with a copy of the exam for the Pet Shop owner and planned to call her as soon as I got home.

I will continue Griswalds' story in another Post. Every little detail of Griswalds' medical history is important. I want people to be  aware of the health problems that a  pet shop puppy can have and the heart ache and the expense that comes with bringing one of these puppies home. There are lots of solutions to ending this Puppy Mill/Pet Shop cycle. For Griswald things will get worse before they get better...