I’m going to try to be as detailed but as brief as possible here. I would like to locate other owners who purchased pups from the same litter or the subse

I purchased a pup from Lucky Pup Ranch in Spring Hill l, Fl on December 5th, 2021. Not the first I’ve purchased from Mario, but when I was picking up my pup, he indicated that the litter immediately after hers was the final litter he would ever be breeding.

I took her to the vet for the first time on 12/21/21. At that time she tested positive for intestinal parasites. I purchased the medication, and my pup completed the treatment. On 1/21/22, I took her to the vet again, she again tested positive for intestinal parasites. They prescribed the same medication, and again she completed the treatment. We were back at the vet again on 2/10/22. This time, I took my chihuahua to the vet as well. Both dogs were tested for intestinal parasites, my chihuahua was negative, and FINALLY Chloe was negative also. The fact that my chihuahua was negative tells me that Chloe came to me with parasites.

Fast forward 10 days, Chloe begins vomiting. I assumed she had eaten something she should not have and took her to the vet AGAIN on 2/21. They tested her for parvo - negative, and took some X-rays. There was a lot of air in her intestines indicating a blockage. They told me there was a chance she could pass the ingested object, but could not determine what the object was. I took her home. On 2/23, she was still vomiting but also still had an appetite. I took her to VEG for a second opinion. They put Chloe on fluids, took a set of X-rays at 11am and another set at 11pm to see if the obstruction was moving. The X-rays were astounding…. There were white speckles they assumed was cat litter throughout her intestines. Ultimately it was determined that she would require surgery. We had the surgery performed on the morning of 2/24. Upon completion of the surgery, the surgeon called to inform me Chloe had not ingested anything abnormal. She had an intussusception - her intestines had inverted on themselves - she had to remove 15 inches of Chloe’s intestine. AND there was no sign of anything causing the white speckles that appeared in her X-rays.

A week later, we had a follow-up with the surgeon. Everything appeared to be healing well and Chloe was doing great! Fast forward one more week - 2 weeks post-op - Chloe developed a fever. I took her back to the surgeon again. They felt a mass in her abdomen and felt it necessary to open her up again. When they did, they found she had developed an extremely aggressive infection and were unable to remove all the damaged tissue from Chloe’s intestine and still have a decent quality of life. The best and only option was to euthanize her.

My family and I have been heartbroken ever since. After a couple days, decided Mario needed to know what had happened. I typed up an email explaining what had happened and sent it to Mario. Within minutes, I received a return response stating my email address had been BLOCKED (not returned undeliverable but intentionally rejected). Unbelievable!!! I began trying to research the white speckles in her X-ray, determined that it was visible in much smaller quantities in the first set of X-rays from 2/21, and that it didn’t go away after the intussusception was repaired. This can only mean one thing…. The speckles were inherited and were more than likely related to her death.

Has anyone here ever encountered a similar scenario? Or does anyone here happen to have a pup from the same litter? Any ideas or suggestions? There’s no reason for a sweet loving 5 month old pup to have had this outcome!! I did everything thing in my power to save her life, the surgeon said this whole thing was completely out of my control.

Sorry…. This ended up much more winded than I intended.

 

Wow. I‘ve never heard of anything like this. I’m so sorry for your loss. I hope other members can provide you with some answers…

I noticed that it was also your pup who had some sort of skin condition. I’m linking that post here as well in case anything might be pertinent to the other health issues your puppy had. Help identify skin issue on 3 month old

 

I'm curious, did the parent dogs have all their clearances?

 

Unfortunately I don’t have a way to know that, since the breeder has blocked my correspondence. I did receive CKC paperwork with my pup, but I’m not sure if that means anything.

 

Created in error

 

Wow, I am so truly sorry not only for your experience, but most importantly, your loss. Chloe looked like a good, happy, little girl. You did everything you could for her 💔

 

Thank you for that! She was an amazing little pup. My 7 year old was completely devastated by this ordeal.

 

I’m sorry for your horrible experience. This isn’t a good breeder but none of it was his fault. Every single dog in Florida gets parasites if they go outside. Even puppies from good breeders can test positive despite regular deworming, it’s one of the reasons you take a puppy to the vet asap.
Intusseception is a freak accident. Nobody could’ve predicted it and it likely has nothing to do with the white specks.
You’re breeder is not a good breeder, but this isn’t their fault. This was just a really awful accident.

 

Never in a million would I think this day would come- I'm going to defend Mario, who is not a good breeder and thank God he is stopping breeding, I do hope that's correct info....
The conclusion you're reaching on pup's intusseception is not founded in reality. All dogs have a parasite load, and more likely the surgery @ VEG (which is a low-cost ER center) or just a sad accident has something to do with the end of the story.
"that can only mean one thing" on the speckles- another conclusion not based in fact. We do not know what the speckles are, so we do not know what it means.

I get it- Mario blocked you - he is a perfectly awful high volume ContKC breeder and FL is good to be rid of him. It's behavior you would have been unlikely to have gotten from a decent human. But none of that means he's responsible for your pup's death. And this pup wasn't the first you'd bought from him.

Also, your puppy did not have CKC registration, pup had ContKC. CKC is Canadian. Continental is a BYB/HVB registry and the pedigree is not worth the paper it's printed on.

 

The point of my post was to hopefully find someone who had seen something similar and/or might be able to explain the speckles. Whatever they are they spread, so it wasn’t something she ingested, and if you don’t know what it is either than you can’t really say if it was or wasn’t inherited.

As far as the parasites go, I have lived in Florida my whole life (over 40 years) and have had dogs since I was a kid - this is the first dog I have EVER had to treat for parasites. So, parasites in Florida are not as common as you or another commenter make them seem.

My guess is Mario blocked my email because another person who purchased a pup from my pups litter contacted Mario with an issue - I, of course, cannot confirm this, which was another reason for my post - hoping someone else from the litter found this group. My feeling on this might have been different if the email had been returned undeliverable as that would have indicated that he closed the email address, however the returned email specifically said BLOCKED, which means he can still receive emails from others. (And that just made me think to resend the email from my husband’s email address 🤦🏻‍♀️). The first dog I purchased from Mario was a husky 12 years ago, and she lived a long, happy, and healthy life. Because of her, I trusted Mario, and I genuinely want this not to be his fault, but I feel I have to explore every avenue to make sense of what happened to my sweet little Chloe. She was taken from us way too soon.

The information you shared about the KC is greatly appreciated and I will keep that in mind. Currently I am in nursing school, and once I graduate I intend to purchase another golden pup as I feel my family’s time with Chloe was way to short. The information will help as I look for another breeder to purchase my golden from in about a year.

 

This is so incredibly sad, I am so sorry for your loss of Chole.

 

I'm so sorry for your loss of Chloe. It sounds like you did the best you could for her.

 

To be fair, I didn't see the OP actually blame or accuse the breeder of anything, unless I missed it. She simply said she wondered if anyone here had a puppy from the same litter, and noted that the breeder had blocked communication with her.

 

Thank you, I feel like I am being attacked for making accusations I didn’t make. I am just looking for answers to things I have tried to research and come up with dead ends. And maybe to understand why the breeder blocked my email because that’s a little suspicious.

 

I’m so sorry for your loss… especially with Chloe being so young <3

everyone here seems to be making accusations against you, but I mean, this isn’t something just anyone can predict and he also was the one breeding non-health tested dogs. I personally am unsure of what the speckles in her intestines may have been. Are there any other local vets you could contact to talk to? Maybe some of them would know? If not, I’m sure someone on this forum can help you

I really am sorry about your loss… my only advice is in the future to look for AKC registered dogs who have had OFA testing and health testing. Good luck with you nursing school and i hope you come across the perfect puppy again in the future!

 

Thank you! I have spoken to a couple people and no one really knows, so I am definitely hoping someone here can help.

 

Where was the intussusception? What part of the GI tract? I was just typing up my inquiry and realized we dk that piece.

 

The intussusception was where the small and large intestine meet. The small intestine actually telescoped into the large intestine.

I genuinely appreciate your efforts in assisting me with finding answers. Being in the medical field, it’s very difficult to have pieces of a puzzle that don’t make sense or don’t add up, so any information you are able to come up with is truly appreciated.

 

So sorry about your puppy. Intussusception is the telescoping of the intestines. There's many things that can cause it, including viral infection or scarring. It sounds nobody is actually at fault. We had to watch for signs of it with our daughter. When you don't know what you're looking for, it's easy to dismiss it as something else.

 

This is all very true, and prior to this happening to my puppy, I didn’t know it was even a possibility. I found out in my research that it happens in human children and then inquired about it to one of my instructors at school. Then, had a friend now an ARNP, who used to be a rad tech tell me that she used to see them a lot in radiology. She explained why it couldn’t be seen in the X-ray images and that typically ultrasound is used to diagnose them. All of which now makes sense and now I know what to look for both in animals and in humans, an excellent, yet heartbreaking, learning experience that will help me for years to come.

 

I am a radiologist. Intussusception is the telescoping of intestine as mentioned earlier. In adults it is seen with large polyps of cancers of the colon. In pediatric population it can be seen with hypertrophy of bowel seen with viral infections. Neither cause is visible with plain xray. Ultrasound is used in children to avoid radiation.

White speckles on film reflects bowel contents with dense material. Antacids, calcium, vitamins, soil can all be dense on xray. It appears decreased on second film I assume because the material had passed. I don't think the specs caused the infection that caused your issues. Hope that helped.

 

I am a radiologist. Intussusception is the telescoping of intestine as mentioned earlier. In adults it is seen with large polyps of cancers of the colon. In pediatric population it can be seen with hypertrophy of bowel seen with viral infections. Neither cause is visible with plain xray. Ultrasound is used in children to avoid radiation.

White speckles on film reflects bowel contents with dense material. Antacids, calcium, vitamins, soil can all be dense on xray. It appears decreased on second film I assume because the material had passed. I don't think the specs caused the infection that caused your issues. Hope that helped.

Thank you for your reply. To give a better timeline and maybe add some insight…. The second image in my post, with mostly air in the intestines was actually taken 2 days prior to the one with speckles visible throughout. If you look closely to that image, you can seem some but very minimal speckling. Then it is very obvious in the other image - almost like it was spreading or expanding. The intussusception surgery occurred the day after the more speckled image was taken and the vet said there was no evidence of anything that might cause the speckling in her poop. When the second image was taken, she still had an appetite and would try to eat, but vomited everything she ate. Nothing about the speckling really makes sense - when they saw the images at the vets office they said it was more than likely cat litter, but there was nothing evident in her intestines when they did the surgery - if it was soil, or any of the other items you mentioned, there would have been some signs of something present - but there was nothing. That’s why they are so confusing.

 

The first thing I thought was birdseed, mainly because I have one dog who eats bird seed off the ground underneath my wild bird feeder and the poops I scoop are full of undigested bird seed.
Not to defend the breeder, but I could imagine he saw the writing on the wall that you are itching to point fingers and sue him and while he certainly is not at fault, he wants to avoid confrontation altogether, hence, him blocking you. Who knows. He's a dead end, don't hope that you'll get answers from him.
FYI I live 20 minutes from Spring Hill...never heard of the guy

 

the breeder doesn’t even have a clue what happened…. He never got my email and based on my history with him, he wouldn’t have thought I would have been in a hurry to sue him and literally had no reason to block my email. He had photos of my first pup posted on his website. All I wanted to do was let him know what had happened because my family was devastated. It wasn’t until my email was blocked that I began questioning his knowledge of the issue and if anyone else with pups from the litter had problems - he made me very suspicious.

 

To show on a radiograph, I'd imagine whatever it is on the mucosa would have to be very dense. IBD makes villi that appears white visually, but I dk that that'd show up on a radiograph, but if surgeon @ VEG didn't see anything, (and isn't it a shame she didn't send tissue off for pathology?) then we'd have to assume it wasn't noticeable like I'd imagine something so apparently dense would be, if the rads are any indication.
I like Anney's thought on birdseed, and the radiologist who posted thoughts on maybe an antacid. With all the GI problems, is there any chance pup got given antacid?
Rads being passed around per the PM.

 

I personally know I never gave her an antacid, I doubt my husband would have. I do know that at some point in all of this mess, I did give her a dose of her trifexis - not sure if that would have the same impact on her images, and I also don’t remember the exact date I gave it to her. I would imagine if it was bird seed the surgeon would have seen it when she removed the section of the intestine, so I’m still not convinced that it’s something she ingested.

 

I'm so sorry. It's devastating losing one this young, and so unfair. It's perfectly understandable wanting to know what happened, our minds think an explanation will help. I don't think you will really get a definitive answer, and that makes it much harder to deal with. I'm truly sorry for the loss of your baby.

 

Sorry for your loss

 

Sorry for your experience but thesis a classic (although extreme) example of why people need to do their homework BEFORE buying a "bargain" pup. You will spend a lot more after the purchase than a quality animal would have cost. Quality means the sire and dam have all the GRCA recommended clearances (Eyes, hips, elbows, heart) as well as the genetic tests that are currently available through a number of vendors. Also consider pups that come from homes where the breeders are more than breeders, i.e. they do things with their animals (especially the ones they breed) and put titles of accomplishments other dogs.

 

I'm so sorry about-faces the loss of your beautiful puppy. You did everything possible for her. I'm sorry your child is devastated.
As your breeder, Mario, has blocked you off from his communication, it just screams of a bad puppy mill breeder not interested in your loss.
You should report him to the better business bureau in the area, file a complaint, so, in case he is still breeding, any breed of dog, people can check. You can also get in touch with "The Golden Retriever Club of America"( this is the parent golden club of all reputable golden clubs & breeders) & report this Mario.

Golden Retriever Club of America

Our responsibility is to promote the temperament, appearance, soundness, natural retrieving and hunting abilities of the Golden Retriever.

grca.org

If you decide, in the future to get another puppy, please call, email, FB, the Golden Retriever Club of America
& get a breeder list from them & all information to ask breeders.
Breeders that belong to this parent club must abide by protocols & health clearances, genetic tests, to be done on parent dogs. You still have to do your "due diligence" questions. A reputable breeder "of merit" always does their best for the future of the golden retriever.
Doesn't matter if it is just a pet & not for show. You want a healthy puppy & these breeders put money, time & health testing into their dogs.
Again, I'm very sorry you went through this.

 

I asked my daughter about the HW dosing prior to rads- she said anything dirt-like, which tablets are, could leave that sort of residue.
She is ECC DVM.

 

I asked my daughter about the HW dosing prior to rads- she said anything dirt-like, which tablets are, could leave that sort of residue.
She is ECC DVM.

I thank you again for all your diligence in trying to help me find answers. Yesterday has been a month since we lost our sweet baby girl and, with your help, I think I am finally starting to find some peace with the matter. It’s definitely been a struggle and wasn’t something we could have even remotely prevented or prepared for.
I truly believe everything happens for a reason. This has been a huge learning experience for me and I have definitely gained some knowledge in doing my research before I purchase another pup. I know Chloe knows that we did everything we could for her and I know that I am not to blame for what happened. There is still some healing that needs to occur and I know that will take some time. It seems so strange that she was only with us for 3 months and losing her has hit me so much harder than saying good-bye to my husky after 12 years. I think because I can look at my husky and know she had a good, long life and it was just her time, while Chloe’s life had just started and she was taken from us well before she should have been.

Thank you again, both to you directly Prism and to everyone else who replied to my post. I will definitely remain part of the group so I can utilize its many resources when I begin searching for my next golden. Maybe at some point, I can help someone else with the knowledge I have gained through my experience as well.

 

I think your post touched us all.
So sad when a young life is taken, made sadder by an uncaring breeder who I never in a million years thought I would, in a sense, defend in any way ...
It will take you time- and I get it, a 12YO is missed, certainly, but the baby? She was just starting to share your adventure and you will probably always think of her-

 

I am so terribly sorry this has happened to your family. Sincere condolences to you. I don’t understand a breeder conducting themselves this way. How hurtful your hearts must be.