Hi everyone,
I’m posting here because I really need to vent about how miserable I’ve been feeling since I adopted my female Cavalier King Charles puppy from a breeder over two months ago. Every single day I find myself wishing I could turn back time, just to get some peace of mind and a bit of sleep back. The adoption has been a disaster from the word go... I picked her up at 8 weeks old at the end of June (she’s my first dog), and I was so happy and had been looking forward to it for ages. She’s tiny, very cute, playful, and loves her food, and the first couple of days were actually quite nice. Mind you, every time we interacted, she’d bite my hands and feet really hard! I even had to order some Crocs just to protect my feet at home! I should also mention she’s quite destructive!
Since she’d only had her first jab, the breeder told me not to take her out until her booster. I followed that to the letter. By the third day, she started having loose stools (no other symptoms). I thought it was just the stress of the move, but it carried on despite giving her some digestive powder. After a week of runny tummies, I took her to the vet. They said it was a stomach bug, so we changed her food and put her on probiotics and some clay-based medicine for a week. But after that week, the loose stools were still there. So, we did a stool sample test, and the results (which took 10 days to come back!) showed she had Giardia and a bacterial infection. She was then put on a 10-day course of Panacur plus antibiotics for the bacteria.
On top of the treatment, I’ve had to disinfect my flat every single day after work, watch her like a hawk to pick up her poo immediately, and deep-clean her crate area, bowls, and bedding (I’d already lost nearly 7 lbs in just one week). Living with her is far from easy; she follows me everywhere, tries to nip my feet at every opportunity, and stops me from getting dressed by tugging at my trousers or socks. I was turning up to work every day absolutely EXHAUSTED.
It was already hell, and then, unfortunately, the Panacur treatment failed...
On the bright side, she’s cleared the bacterial infection. But because of all this, we’ve had to push back her boosters twice, and in the end, we’ve had to restart her whole vaccination course from scratch. Her booster is now booked for the 28th of August! The vet suggested taking her out in the meantime, but I’m terrified she’ll catch something nasty like Parvo or another deadly virus.
Even though I’m going through hell, I do love this little dog.
A few days ago, we started another 10-day course of Panacur, but I have a feeling it’s not going to work. I feel like by now, my flat must be infested with the parasite! Her stools haven’t changed, though luckily, other than that, she’s always been full of beans.
I’ve been trying to hold it together for two months, but I feel like I’m hitting a wall. I’m getting no enjoyment out of living with her. Cleaning up poo several times a day, constantly scrubbing everything and washing my hands... I’m starting to feel disgusted and I’m scared of catching the parasite myself. The saddest part is that I’m starting to distance myself from her; I’m hesitant to stroke or cuddle her. My hands are raw from all the washing.
In short, I’m at my wits' end and just so tired (I’m only getting 4 or 5 hours of sleep a night). I have no time to look after myself. I’m miserable; that’s the only way to describe it.
I can’t believe it, I’ve just had the worst luck...
Talking to people I know, none of them went through anything like this when they got their puppies. I never imagined it would be this hard. I should have adopted an adult dog from a rescue like the RSPCA; that was my original plan anyway... Before this, I had a rescue cat for 18 years and it was pure BLISS—we were totally in sync.
But I’ve made a huge mistake and now I have to deal with it.
My goal now is to get rid of this bloody Giardia, so if any of you have dealt with this before with a puppy, please give me some advice. I’m desperate.
Thanks for listening.
