Help re this dog please. Urgent .

[Runrabbitrunss]

Please dog experts advise us re

1. likely breed of this dog.The elderly lady who had her is ill and wants us to have her . She is beautifully behaved . The lady said that she is on pet plan and has been since her purchase at 9 months old. Clean bill of health.
2. She was told that she was a bichon and thats all she knows.
3. We are due to collect her tomorrow. She sent videos of her being bathed this evening and I noticed that her ears are grey and she has apricot also .
4. We are now concerned that she may be a cavachon? This worries us as we are aware that they have a propensity to heart disease.
5. Is there a way to safely proceed with this ? If so please advise us step by step. The elderly lady is significantly ill - we are unsure that she can even get her to the vets for genetic testing. What if we bring her home and have that done and she is a cavashon as apparently they have heart disease by age ten ? She is 4 .
6. The elderly lady loves her dearly and we are just worried about what to do now
7. Pleaswle help. She genuinely thinks she is a bichon .
8. i can send extra pics .
9. Dont think the ladys health can take the stress of assessment etc but we sort of need to .. ? And we cant find a compromise here . We luve 3 hrs away but have face timed and built up honest communication.

Here

She's insured? All dogs come with their own known issues. If the dog is calm natured and reasonably trained that is all I would be concerned about tbh.

I’m not a dog person but as this lady is clearly going through a lot, I’d take the dog and not care what breed it is. If it develops major heart isssues down the line I’d deal with it then (ie have it humanely euthanised).

Any dog can have issues and all dogs are predisposed to something.
If she seems in good health and is insured not sure what more you can do

As above. Any dog can get ill. The temperament is the main thing, as is giving her a good home.

Have you had a dog before OP? Their health can be unpredictable at any point. Are you prepared for pet ownership?

The dog needs a loving home, if you can’t afford to keep up insure or meet medical needs now or in the future you should not be offering the dog a home.

Here .
Yes - long time dog owner but never of a breed that can carry heart issues .
The breeds I have had were mostly dna tested.

I have large breed dogs so can’t say what that little dog is but a reverse image search says -

‘The image shows a small, white companion dog, likely a Maltese or a related breed such as a Coton de Tulear or Havanese. ‘

PInkyStarfish
I can afford insurance.
Our last dog’s insurance was very high.
The issue is that we believed she was a Bichon - as does the lady- and it could be that she is a cavashon - and the cava aspect is well known re heart issues .

Why does it matter?

Exactly. If it develops heart issues, the kindest thing would be to have it put to sleep rather than put it through lots of traumatic surgery etc, so that’s surely the plan B?

Quite..... the dog just needs a loving home fgs. Any dog can get heart problems or cruciate problems, just like humans they are all different.

You either want the dog or you don’t , what breed it is is immaterial , any animal can succumb to an illness at any time .

Unless you are planning on breeding from her I fail to see the problem. She looks like a sweet thing

OP I think you've committed. That lady will be stressing out over her dog.

Rehome later if you're not happy. She looks like a sweet well cared for little thing. I doubt she'll be waiting for a home long. It's a weird thing to focus on when all.dogs can develop issues.

I’m so confused why this matters? Crossbreeds are generally healthier than pedigrees so I’m not sure why you are so concerned.

Tbh you sound like a breeder.

Please don't insult decent breeders.

I'm sure that many on here would take her if you don't want her. I certainly would.

Erm…if you mean pay into those ridiculous pay plans that most venture-capitalist owned vets insist on, then forget it.

Just give the dog a nice home and take it from there. If you want to be risk-averse, then pay for pet insurance and register with a vet for emergencies. But do not get sucked into a ‘pet plan’.

Ah i see - thank you .

I was hoping to have a dog with a long happy life together and google told us that by age 10 100% of cavas developed heart issues so it worried us .

Yes,I have had dogs , but never one with this propensity before .. and I was feeling concerned as we have only had pedigrees before with dna tested parents -so that whilst anything can happen to any dog ,this gave us the best roll of the dice so to speak..

We have literally just found out that she is not the dog we thought she was breed wise ie a pure , bichon and we would never actively choose a not dna tested dog with cava in the mix due to this precaution we usually take - if that makes sense.

She has a lovely nature .

We have a cavachon, he is coming up to 11 years old.
He has never been ill. Vet is impressed of his fitness.
Best dog we have ever had. Intelligent, calm with the grandchildren,
He is starting to sleep a bit more now he's aging.
But still likes going on a good walk. Has lots of doggy friends.
Also likes a mini sausage but not the big ones and knows if we have cut it up.

We have a cavachon, he is coming up to 11 years old.
He has never been ill. Vet is impressed of his fitness.
Best dog we have ever had. Intelligent, calm with the grandchildren,
He is starting to sleep a bit more now he's aging.
But still likes going on a good walk. Has lots of doggy friends.
Also likes a mini sausage but not the big ones and knows if we have cut it up.

We have a cavachon, he is coming up to 11 years old.
He has never been ill. Vet is impressed of his fitness.
Best dog we have ever had. Intelligent, calm with the grandchildren,
He is starting to sleep a bit more now he's aging.
But still likes going on a good walk. Has lots of doggy friends.
Also likes a mini sausage but not the big ones and knows if we have cut it up.