Puppy nearly died from deadly parvovirus after owner was duped by rogue breeder

Matt Winship, from York, bought two puppies with his family, but later discovered they had been duped by a disreputable breeder. When he took them to the vets, one of them was diagnosed with parvovirus, despite the breeder telling them he had been vaccinated.

Matt and his family went to visit two puppies, Bullseye and Luke, but were unable to see the puppies’ mum or dad.

“Looking back, knowing what I know now, when we went to visit the pups I realise it was dodgy,” the 23-year-old said. “The whole house seemed unkempt and there didn’t seem to be much consideration for the living conditions of the puppies. It just wasn’t a nice scenario, and I think that’s probably why we committed to getting them to be honest, so they weren’t still stuck there.

“The breeders just seemed keen for a ‘quick sale’ - they didn’t ask us any questions about our life or show any interest in the home the pups were going to.”

Matt took them to the vets because he wasn’t given any microchip or vaccination records from the breeder. The vet discovered Bullseye had parvovirus, a deadly virus common in puppy-farmed dogs.

Matt said: “It was touch and go as to whether he was going to make it. The breeder had told us the pups had the parvovirus vaccine but they gave us no proof. If we hadn’t taken them to the vets to get microchipped they might not have spotted the parvovirus early enough, and Bullseye might not have made it.”

Bullseye recovered from parvovirus, but both he and Luke have gone on to have behavioural issues at home, likely because the puppies weren’t socialised from birth. Matt and his partner later got a cocker spaniel, Cody, from a Kennel Club-assured breeder and found the difference startling.

He said: “I think compared to the experience in buying Luke and Bullseye, we were more clued up on what to look out for. We had looked at The Kennel Club website for advice about purchasing a puppy and the tips on questions to ask/red flags, and my partner used to work for the RSPCA so he also knew what to look out for.

“The whole experience of buying Cody was so different. We had a proper puppy contract and met both Cody’s mum and dad as they were family dogs. They both seemed really healthy with well-groomed coats, and happy tails that were always wagging. It was a completely different environment compared to where we had picked Bullseye and Luke up from.

“The breeder let us visit Cody as a puppy nearly every day, so when it came to the time of bringing him home, there was no ‘getting used to us’ period. The breeder was lovely and so involved, she would share updates and pictures of the pups growing up like their first visits to the vet.

“When we had brought Luke and Bullseye home they had both been more reactive, whereas when we bought Cody home, at ten weeks old, the breeders had clearly already spent time socialising him.”

The Kennel Club’s research recently revealed almost fifth of puppies (22 per cent) bought in Yorkshire are suspected to have originated on a puppy farm.

Mark Beazley, Chief Executive of The Kennel Club, added: “With the world of puppy breeding and buying getting more and more difficult to navigate, it’s crucial that would-be owners know exactly what to look for when buying a puppy, to avoid being duped.

“Scammers and puppy farmers are clever and will do what they can to disguise their cruel trade so it’s important to be extremely vigilant. Puppy buyers should make sure they’re asking the right questions, see the puppy, with their mum and in their home environment, and step back if things don't feel right.”

For more information, visit thekennelclub.org.uk/bepuppywise.