I thought I would tell this story to honor my boy Juneau and to maybe help others and perhaps prevent another story like ours.

Juneau was a beautiful Alaskan Malamute. I got him when he was 6 weeks old and from the instant he came home we fell in love. He grew quickly into a handsome and gorgeous young malamute. Until he was about 6 months old. I started to notice that his back legs crossed when he walked and he was tender in his hips. I got concerned enough that I got his hips x rayed within 2 weeks of noticing this. The vet took me into his office, sat me down, and told me he had devastate news. The picture of his x ray came on the screen and that moment I instantly knew what would happen in my near future. A horribly disformed picture of hips with sockets that weren't even fully formed and femur bones sticking up almost past the point where the hips began was glaring at me. My precious Juneau was diagnosed with severe hip dysplasia and 6 and a half months old. My vet immediately recommended me to the best orthopedic vet in the area. We drove two and a half hours a week latee. At this point Juneau was in so much pain that nobody other than myself could touch him. During the consultation he had more x rays taken and the surgeon told me that he didn't recommend Juneau for any surgical options due to the severity of his case.

I spent 1 more month with Juneau before he could no lo g hold himself up to relieve himself. I let him go shortly before he turned 8 months old. I will always love and cherish him with all of my heart. He brought me put of a very dark place and taught me that I could love and be totally selfless.

Juneau was purchased from a backyard breeder. He was AK registered and I paid a large amount for him. I guess I just want people to be aware that these issue do occur if you don't purchase from a legitimate breeder. They are recommended for a reason. To prevent heartbreaks such as mine. It has been almost 2 years since I lost Juneau and I know have a beautiful husky named Reyna June. She is so amazing and I know a part of Juneau lives on in her. RIP Juneau 8/20/2011-5/18/2012

So sorry for loss. One of the many reasons this forum is so pro-research and why breeding is such a hot topic, because people who are inexperienced or money greedy just breed two dogs together and don't realize what they're doing, what heartache they can cause future puppy owners. Thank you for sharing you story of Juneau, his story is certainly not the only one of its kind on this forum.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm sure it wasn't easy, especially since he was so young.
Thank you for sharing your story and I hope you continue to share it so people can know the consequences of BYB.

This is actually my biggest concern with Lycus. He came from a BYB and my biggest fears are him getting hip dysplasia and juvenile arthritis, especially since he ended up being such a big dog. Never again will I purchase from a BYB, and I hope your story helps others feel the same way.

That had to be so hard! Juneau is running free now. Thank you for sharing your story. My first husky was from a byb too, but I got lucky, she was pretty healthy until her last couple months. She lived to be 16, but that was sheer luck, I will never buy from a byb again.

Rocio have you had xrays done on Lycus? You could even send them to the OFA, aside from the xray cost it's only about $40 to have the OFA look at them. Then you would know for sure what you could be dealing with.

wow... That is a terrible story, i couldnt imagine having to go through that. that is one of my biggest fears with my boy (puppy mill survivor), as im sure it is for many others.

Thanks for shareing your story.

Sorry about Juneau. That sounds devastating.

Like many others on this forum, my boy is from a puppy mill. While he has a really bad back and some other health issues that may or may not be due to bad breeding, his hips are in great condition. I can't even imagine what you went through or how devastating that had to be. As pet owners, we sometimes have to make really hard decisions to do right by our animals. RIP, Juneau.

thank you for sharing such a heart breaking story of your boy, he at lest went to your family that loved him very much and were willing to do what ever you could to make him feel better, just image if he went to a home with someone that did not care as much as you. while his life was short it was nice for him to be around loving humans. please share this heart break as much as you can to save others from buying from a BYB. this is also why im not so nice to people coming on to this site taking about breeding when they have no idea what they are doing.

Thank you everyone. I am glad to hear that others of you who didn't get your babies from the best circumstances have them in decent health. It was very hard to go through and I blamed myself for a very long time. I'm glad that I can get the message out and hopefully prevent someone else from going through this.

The hardest part was when I went back to the breeder and explained what happened. I wasn't hoping to get my money refunded or anything I just wanted them to know that the dogs they were breeding were carrying serious genetic defects. I was promptly cussed out and told I would have the police called on me for harassing them. The greed astounded me. The extra 600 I spent on Reyna is the best investment I have ever made. I spent triple that just in Juneau vet bills.

Jbealer, I often think about that. If he had gone to someone who would have just tied him up in the backyard or tried to breed him again. It makes my skin crawl. I am very proud that I gave him the best life I could have possibly given him.

wpskier222 wrote:

Rocio have you had xrays done on Lycus? You could even send them to the OFA, aside from the xray cost it's only about $40 to have the OFA look at them. Then you would know for sure what you could be dealing with.

I haven't had any done on his hips. I'll definitely be looking into that, and more than likely sending them to the OFA. Thanks for the tip!

This may be a dumb question, but why get xrays and OFA on dog not intended for breeding or not showing symptoms? I know Loki will be big and started him on supplements at 4 months since vet said that can help him if predisposed. Otherwise, I am just curious.

Only for your own peace of mind. The OFA has several (I think 3 or 4) expert orthopedic vets evaluate and score the X-rays so if your vet isn't an ortho expert you can still have them looked at by experts. I'm a worry wort about my dog and if I was worried about potential issues I would totally do it, if only for the reason that I wouldn't freak out every time he limped or something.

I'm really sorry about your Juneau. You did the best you could in that situation. How very heartbreaking.

My girl is also from a BYB. She is in good health, but I do worry for reasons like this. I will probably also never buy from a BYB again. She gets two check-ups a year.

Thank you for sharing your story.

this happened to one of my friends who went to a backyard breeder who a friend recommended her. It turned out the dog wasn't even one of her litters and she had been selling it for a friend misrepresenting it as one of her dogs litters. If the dog is lucky it will walk with a limp all it's life if the surgery works