After making some enquiries we organised in conjunction with ARF to get her released from the pound, groomed and seen by a vet to assess her quality of life, and see if she was suitable for rehoming. It appears that Tammy has had quite a number of litters in her time, and judging from her condition on surrender, she may have come from a backyard breeder. Unfortunately, she was found to have a malignant tumour behind her left eye. In addition to this, she also is a little wobbly in the hindquarters and has dry eye, a common complaint in shih tzus. The vet was confident that she was not in pain, and the decision was made not to rehome her, but allow her to live her remaining days as a valued family member.
Tammy represents the unseen side of breeding, the females that are overbred and poorly cared for in order to produce puppies for profit. Instead of being a treasured and well cared for companion, she was a commercial enterprise. Please remember dogs like Tammy when considering a new family member and buy your puppy from a registered breeder or give a home to an older rescue dog.
A thousand thanks to ARF for their assistance in our adoption of Tammy. Please support their tireless efforts
