Saturday, June 23, 2007

Introducing Fiona Fondue

Here she is, in all her glory.
Born April 13th, 2007
Fiona is a soon to be APR registered pure-bred Pomeranian Pup
See below for her story:



April 2007:

After throwing around the idea of getting a companion Pomeranian for D'artagnan for a few years, Dan and I decided to get a new puppy. I had rescued D'artagnan from a shelter, and this time around I wanted to get the puppy I wanted. The exact sex/color/disposition/breed.

I always felt sad that D'artagnan and I never got to know each other while he was a teeny puppy, so I was looking forward to the puppy experience with a brand new dog.

I had been searching on the Internet for reputable breeders for awhile, and couldn't locate a Pomeranian breeder in Arizona. After emailing back and forth with a few breeders, I found http://www.pomsource.com/
Run by Carol Miller

May 2007:

Fiona was about a month old, and we seemed like a good fit. I got lots of puppy pics emailed, and arranged a payment plan with the breeder, Carol Miller.

We were super excited.

Carol had assured me that Fiona had been to her vet, and that she was declared "perfect".

June 2007:

  • June 18th

Fiona went to the vet for the final checkup in Illinois with the breeder before flying out to Phoenix.

The vet signed the health certificate, and again, proclaimed her healthy.

  • June 19th,

I picked Fiona up from Burbank airpot and flew her back to Phoenix with me. She was adorable, playful, and possessed many many sharp teeth!

Loved her immediately though.

  • June 20th
Pomsource had me sign a contract stating that it was my responsibility to take Fiona to the vet within 48 hours of receiving her. The contract also went onto say that if my vet were to find any defects in Fiona, I would need to ship her back to the breeder in Illinois at my cost, and the breeder would send me another "healthy" puppy.

So, we went to the Ahwatukee Animal Clinic, and the vet found a level 4 murmur. Very serious. It was his opinion that we should wait a few weeks, and if the murmur still exists, take her to a cardiologist for an ultrasound examination (which will cost around $400)

The ultrasound would then let us know if:
  1. the murmur is benign
  2. the murmur is fixable with surgery and/or medicines


However, the vet was very clear in stating that this is a defect Fiona got as a result of bad breeding. Carol Miller actually admitted in an email to me after the fact that she's had at least one other puppy born and sold with a murmur.

Today
So here we are today.
Still waiting to see what Fiona's fate will bring.

I'm in the process of contacting attorney general's, lawyers, and breeding associations.

I'm not doing this out of revenge. I just don't want anyone else to have to go through this kind of heartbreak because of the greed of Carol Miller and her http://www.pomsource.com/ website.

I've contacted Carol Miller
She simply says "sorry" and that if I want a new puppy I need to send Fiona back

However, Fiona is unable to fly with her heart condition.
So, I'm up shit creek.

Carol Miller would prefer to put Fiona at risk of death, just so I send her back to her, so she can try and sell her off to someone else expecting a healthy puppy

Shame on her.
Poor little Fiona. We'll take care of her, good or bad. I think we're entitled to something from the breeder, since she stated that she was a healthy puppy.

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