Hi everyone,
First I want to say thanks for all the advice and info.
We met the puppy yesterday and he was the sweetest little guy, I fell in love instantly.
We asked lots of questions and got some answers.
We told them we'd think about it.
Well, when we got home my husband said he would gladly take the little guy home, but he just feels now is not the right time for us to add another bully to our family.
Our house is quite small and cramped as it is.
We hope to move in the next 1-2 years and buy a place with property where it is my hope we will offer rescue to Bullys in need. and perhaps add a special little pup to our family.

So, they already have another family who would like to take him, so at least he will go to a home with love.

Thanks again everyone.

Tiffany and Stella

and thanks for letting us know. We wish the little guy well, too.

I have a bully with a heart murmur. I was given her by the breeder after she had tried to have puppies..breeder didn't know she had a hert murmur...anyway, I had her cheked by 3 vets who all agreed she had anywhere from a 3 to a 5.. bad to worse. very scary. they told me she would probably die within 3 months. I have now had her for almost 2 years. Every vet I had taken her to was surprised at how well she has done with water pills I have her on. They cost me about 40 dollars every 2 months. I wanted to have her spayed but I couldn't get a vet to do it.. anyway, she got open pyomerta(thank God it wasn't a closed one) but I decided to take the chance and have her spayed... my vet new he had to spay her. He had her up and moving within 20 mins. She is doing great, but I will tell you I can tell it will be soon that I will have to up her medication. She is on a very low dose right now..but with age it will only get worse. She has been a joy...loves to ride in the baby stroller.. if you email me, Tiffiny I will send you pictures of her. DOn't know how to put them on bulldogsworld...anyway, I agree with everyone..you should not have to buy her.. My little girl is going to be 5 this summer. hope this helps...

huge heartfelt thank you.

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While I agree that many breeders will 'give' a handicapped puppy away to a good home (such as one with Spina Bifida or one with a grade 3-4 heart murmur, one with kidney malformation, etc.) each decision is individual. Some feel strongly that taking a pup "for free" diminishes the value of the commitment, and asking someone to reimburse the cost of exploration of the defect is, IMHO, a reasonable request. I don't know (and have doubts) about the medical evaluation of this pup costing $500, and I think that this is something the breeder has to look at; he will never recoup the value of a healthy pup and if the whole breeding is a financial loss, the burden should not be placed upon the head of this puppy!
Ask to see the bills for the cardiac evaluation, and offer to reimburse those.

If you can afford the medical care(which believe me will a lot)then I would probably take the puppy so I would know it would have a good home. I actually lost my baby in June, she had a heart murmur(pulmonic stenosis to be exact) and she went into congestive heart failure and actually had a heart attack in her sleep. She had turned 3 in April but we did take her to the cardiologist every month and even sometimes more then once a month to get the fluid drained off her stomach from the congestive heart failure. Calli was also on lots of medications which cost way over $100 a month so that is why I was saying if you could afford the medical care. Calli was actually out of our breeding and she actually had a sister that also died from the same thing and her sister was only 18 months old. So if you take good care of the puppy it might live longer then a year or 2 you just never know. We had actually sold her sister that had the heart murmur because our vet said she was fine but after her owner brought her to another vet he diagnosed her with the heart murmur and so of course we gave the woman the option of keeping her or us taking her back but she decided to keep her and we actually did give her the money back she paid for her so like I said I really don't think you should have to pay for the puppy especially with all the expense of taking care of it. Please let us know what you decide and if you decide to get it keep us informed and if you have any questions feel free to email me!

My Stella had 2 litters of 1 pup each, both pups died.
She was a nurse maid to other litters, and in my opinion would make an awesome "mommy" for this pup.
I think our home would be the best option for this little guy.
I think they are asking $500.00 for the pup just to recoup the costs, as the litter was initially 5 and now there are only 2 left and she has lost money on the litter.
She offered to give us the mom of this litter, she is retiring as well for free, but we aren't sure how well she and STella would get along.
Basically they are holding a couple of dogs before they let them go, for us to have first pick.
I would like to take the pup because I know no one else will want him.
I am a sucker for the "under dog"

Thanks for your help everyone,I will keep you updated!

Tiffany and Stella

you're actually taking the dog off her hands. You are VERY compassionate for even offering to take this dog in the first place; 99% of people would probably walk away, and you can't blame them. Elaine things the pup may live 3-4 years, what if it's only 6 to 12 months? You never know with these things. Maybe the condition will improve, maybe it won't, and it'll just get worse.

Once again, let us know what you decide and know that our thoughts and prayers are with you in this tough decision.

and based on your replies, it would seem that this is a good setting for the pup. As for evaluating the pup itself, you know its a gamble, not only that the pup may have a limited lifespan, but that you will have additional costs to continue testing (cardiac ultrasound, x-rays and such)probably every 3-6mos, especially until adulthood is reached. What is the temperament of your adult bulldog...do you think there can be harmony between the two. Remember that the youngster will be annoying, nipping and teasing the elder dog, as all puppies do, and hopefully the older dog is mellow enough to tolerate it, play gently, and generally accept this youngster into the rhythm of the family without much jealousy or acting-out.

IMHO, if you can answer a reasonable 'yes' to the above, I'd probably go ahead and take a chance, hope the pup lives a reasonable quality of life, with the understanding that it may only be 3-4yrs long. There's no shame in saying that emotionally I am not able to commit to this dog and its needs. I applaud the breeder for being honest with you, paying for testing up front, etc. I presume the "cost" is basically reimbursing the breeder for out-of-pocket costs for this pup.

Please let us know what you decide.

nm

We have 1 other bulldog, who we adopted as a retired breeder from the same people we would be getting the pup from.
We would be purchasing the pup at a VERY reduced rate, a loss for the breeders.
The vet who confirmed the murmur specializes in Bullys and is trusted.
We do not have young children.
We understand the need to keep the pup from exerting itself.


Tiffany and Stella

That is one of the first things I would want to know...which vet or vets have examined this pup, and if you have a vet you have trust and faith in, can you have him/her contact the diagnosing doc for a doc-to-doc review and have that info related back to you?

It may not matter much, but its worth asking: is this pup being given to you, sold to you at a reduced rate, or sold at the customary purchase price for bulldog pups (with limited AKC registration)???

Do you have any other pets in your home? Do you have any children in the home under 10yrs of age? If this dog requires limited physical exertion, do you really think that is achievable with other pets/young kids and do you, as owner, have dog ownership experience, bulldog experience??