Can anyone give me any information on how this puppy will cope without her front paw??  She was born like this.She is currently 8 weeks and can not walk without falling over. Also the bredder says that "it just happened" can this be true or is it a sign of bad breeding?? Should I go ahead  with buying her, she looked a bit grubby, but bright, confident and playful. Please any information will be much appreciated. Also is there somewhere to check that the breeder/kennels are reputable there must be  a web site but I cant find it.

If I were you, hard though it would be, I would not buy this puppy. She clearly has problems, that may well be lifelong. You deserve to have a healthy puppy to share your life with, not one that's going to be a worry and possibly a financial burden in vet fees for a long time to come.

We will need more information to help you find out whether this person is reputable, it may be that you need to conduct your investigation off forum or at least by private message.

Dawn R.

Thanks for the quick reply. I agree with your comments on the issue of going ahead. I'm unsure hence the queries. The puppy was so sweet and other than the foot seemed ok. I just wanted to take her away from the place. Could it be genetic from over breeding?? Saw the mother, 2 yrs old and other than thin coat was bright and bouncey and of a good weight.

Congenital (in the womb) defects happen at random, and are usually just unfortunate accidents. If the paw being wrong affects the pups movement as you say, then a vet won't simply remove a paw, the whole leg comes off, at either the shoulder (if a front leg) or the hip (if a hind) - that's what I was told when we started the amputation process to eliminate pernicious infection). The dog will cope much better that way. If you're happy with a three-legged dog, go ahead. If not, don't.

I would have thought a good breeder would NOT be charging for a puppy carrying such defects and if later, should need surgery would they be prepared to pay  - probably not ?! So if this breeder is intent on taking money for the puppy then I certainly do not rate their ethics.

Margaret

We had one once with a back leg that hadn't formed properly due to it being stuck in one position for a long time before being born.  She lived fine with the use of 3 legs (kept the deformed one) although she could use it to scratch etc !! 

Have to say that we kept her as we didn't think it fair on someone else to look after her.  Dare I ask how much the breeder is asking for the pup?  with you saying the pup was grubby etc. doesn't really give me a good view of the breeder.

And the comment 'just wanted to take her away from the place'. I appreciate how you feel about the puppy, but if she isn't from a reputable breeder she may well have more problems than the visible one and be at the vets all the time. Sounds risky to me!