A family has given a warning to dog buyers after learning their adored new puppy might have to be put down after being allegedly sold near Uxbridge with a fake veterinary history.
The buyer, a woman from Hertfordshire who asked not to be named, bought the Labrador Spaniel cross on Friday (September 9) after seeing it advertised online in west London.
However, she was devastated to later find that the dog had not been microchipped or vaccinated despite the vaccination card saying it had been.
The female puppy, named George after the woman's father who recently passed away, has been diagnosed with the highly contagious parvovirus and might have to be put down on Thursday (September 15).
Parvovirus is a highly contagious viral disease that can also transmitted to puppies by their mother, but most are vaccinated against it.
'Stop them going through this misery'
The buyer, a 46-year-old support worker for the elderly, told getwestlondon : “I wanted to make people aware. We just want to stop this from happening.
“If I can stop this happening to someone else and stop them going through the misery we're going through at the moment, at least I feel I've done something.”
The family, from Potters Bar in Herfordshire, bought George from Denham Green near Uxbridge for £220.
They were led to believe that she was three months old and had been microchipped and had been given vaccination injections.
Vaccination card was fake
But on taking the puppy to the vet for a check up, the family say they realised the vaccination card had been faked.
Based on the size of the puppy, the vet also told the family that she was no older than six to eight weeks - at least a month younger than the seller had allegedly claimed.
Just days after she was taken home, the puppy fell ill with diarrhoea and was taken to an animal hospital in St Albans, where she remains.
Vet bills could cost £3,000
The puppy's owner said if they pursue the treatment for porvovirus, vet bills could end up totalling £3,000.
George was chosen and named by the owner's 10-year-old son.
She said: “I dread to think he's going to be like [if she's put down].
“I just want to get it out there. The puppy is very distressed and in pain.”
