Imported German Shepherds from Germany - Page 1

Just had a dog imported from Germany, the kennel that we went through assured us that the dog would be vet checked, in good health, all necessary vaccinations, and there would be no reason to take our imported dog to the Vet once we received it, After about 3-4weeks of receiving our dog we decided to take it to our vet, just to make sure. She has Heartworms and has had them for more than 6 months about 5 months before she was supposedly shipped from Germany. Is there any advice out there??? Does this happen very often with imported dogs??

To my knowledge, the fly that transmits heartworms to canines does not exist in Germany. It is therefore unlikely that your dog was imported with heartworms. It is common to have a dog checked upon receipt by a veterinarian to ensure that they have the innoculations and medications required in your country/state. There are some regions for example in the US where it is highly recommended to have your dog innoculated for lymnes disease. If you are in an area where heart worm medication is common, your dog should have immediately been put on it.

It is a mosquito that transmits heartworm disease and it takes 6 months from the time a dog is bitten for a positive result to show up on a test...... Dog must have been somewhere where they had mosquitoes! We recently imported a dog from the Netherlands and I was told that they don't have any problem with heartworms there either .. she did test negative. I would also have any dog I purchased looked at by my vet regardless of where it came from...

Did you deal directly with the German kennel, or with a broker? Germany does not have heartworms, BUT if you dealt with a broker, the possibility could exist that you were told the dog was imported from Germany when it actually was not. Or the posibility could exist that the dog was not imported for you, but was already in the states for at least 5-6 months before you got it. Just theories, on my part. Does seem strange, however. Stephen

Thank each of you for the quick responses, We are learning what we really felt was the case (No heartworms in Germany) we went trough a US kennel to broker the deal. Obviously we are becoming more and more dis-satisfied

There is a sand mosquito that can give a disease called "Leischmaniose" that has appeared in Germany. Check out this link http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.spanischehunde.de/sites/info/in_spanien/hundeleischmaniose.htm&prev=/search%3Fq%3DLeischmaniose%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DG You may need to translate it from German with Google or something Best Chris

Leishmaniosis has been troubling some dogs in Germany for many years - but only dogs that have been travelling with their owners to the areas where the infection is common, like popular German tourist destinations like southern Spain/France etc. Leishmaniosis is also prevalent in South America. But dogs cannot be infected while in Germany. So please, no spreading of any unnecessary panic here. Though it may be something to consider when purchasing a dog from countries where it does ocurr, and certainly when travelling to the areas where it does ocurr. When travelling to affected areas the article recommends to put a Scalibor Protectorband on the dog, basically a specialized flea colar with the active ingredient Deltamethrin that is supposed to repel and kill the sandmosquito, and ticks as well. *** Sounds like Stephen is right on with his suggestion that the dog has been stateside for a while. A good reminder for people to commence heartworm treatment immideately after their new dog from Germany arrives, if it is a problem in their area.

What are any suggestions as to what a reputable Kennel/importer would do in a case like ours??? I am a self employed man myself and do understand the meaning of standing behind the sale & customer service What should I expect as a customer, from a reputable kennel/importer???? I don't want to be unreasonable, we love the dog that was supposable imported( a dog that has heart worms from Germany), but she is unhealthy and will need special car after she has her pups, (at an expense to us). We were assured we when purchasing our dog that she was healthy and now we are concerned if she will be healthy enough too birth the pups/nurse them and live through it.

Unless you were given a warranty by your US seller that you can enforce, chances are you have a situation to contend with all by yourself as there are risks involved with animals that one inhearits with a purchase. Taking her to your vet immediately upon arrival and reporting any concerns at that time would have been wise. Better yet, the dog should have been checked by 'your' vet before you bought it. Having said that you may be at the mercy of the seller without a written agreement. It may cost more to litigate than it's worth even if you have one. I suggest you just approach the seller and see what they will do for you based on your written agreement and go from there. If your research revealed they were reputable, there may be some assistance. Check the ownership transfer dates. I suspect the dog was in the US prior to your purchase.