Originally Posted by Sr. Mints
I bought--correction, I rescued--one of my dogs at Petland in April of last year. Funny thing is, during Easter a week or two before I got him, I was lecturing my cousin over dinner about the evils of pet store dogs, and spend pretty much the entire evening talking about all the great dogs that need homes.
Here's how it went down:
My girlfriend and I were at Market Mall, and we did the obligatory Petland stop. I hate going in there, it depresses the living #### out of me. Usually I wait outside. Anyway, I went in and there were three little dogs, boston-terrier chihuahua crosses, and one looked so lethargic and scared, and was barely moving. I felt sick.
I couldn't get it out of my mind.
Perhaps fate, but I had to stop at Market mall by myself two days later, and something pulled me into Petland. Two of the dogs were gone, just the remaining sad, depressed little guy. I asked to hold him, he was all skin and bones, and when I held him, he squirmed into my jacket. Again, I felt sick.
So of course I bought him. $1500. What the #### was I thinking? I was asking myself this when I was purchasing him, while I was filling out the paerwork, while the ditzy girls working there were trying to upsell me on all the crap didn't need but they told me I did. What was I doing?!
I felt sick at what I had done. I expected my girlfriend to be mad when I brought him home, even though she doesn't live with me, but she wasn't. My other dog, who is a rescue dog pretty much hated him. It was just an awful situation, very stressful. I am ashamed to admit that I even contemplated returning him, losing half of the price of him.
Anyway, the first night having the new dog, who is named Wendel, I woke up to see that he had pooped blood all over his kennel. I freaked out, and took him immediately to the vet Petland said I had to take him to for warranty reasons ('warranty,' that sounds so f'ing cruel!).
The vet actually told me he was fine! They signed off on this dog, even though he was skin and bones, had diarrhea, was pooping blood, had little energy. Then they told me he had a chipped tooth and I should have it pulled and I should have his feet operate don because they were splayed or something. They did some blood tests and they came back clean.
Calling bull#### in my mind, I went home and made an appointment for my regular vet. Had blood work done, and turns out my dog had campylobactor (sp?), giardia and one other thing I forget what it was called. By this time, my other dog was pooping blood and had insane diarrhea. And, low and behold, I had the worst diarrhea and stomach pains in my life.
So I got both my dogs on medication, and they slowly got better. Wendel was 12 weeks old and four pounds when I got him, a week later he was seven pounds.
I had bloodwork and stool work (?) done and was diagnosed with campylobacter, my girlfriend also had it. I went on antibiotics because it wasn't going away, though my girlfriend did not need to. Had my carpets cleaned.
About a month later, I notice little bald spots on Wendel. Took him to the vet and it turns out he had Mange. More medication. About three months later that went away.
I have no idea how much money I spent on this dog. But he came from deplorable conditions, and surely would have died at Petland. And now I have a great, loving little dog with not a mean bone in his whole body. Both my dogs get along, we're one big happy family.
But F--K Petland. One of my biggest regrets was not exposing this somehow.
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