12/2008 I fostered a little Chihuahua pup named “Petal” at the request of Golden Bone Rescue in Prescott. I fostered Petal for a couple of months and she was adopted out to a great home.
7 week old “Petal” is an adorable, very sweet Chihuahua mix girl. She is the offspring of 2 siblings. Even though her parents were not from the same litter, they are siblings so Petal is at risk of developing characteristics of inbreeding….it could be a nervous disposition, luxated patellas or just general delicateness. so far, we are seeing nothing out of the ordinary. She is just a sweet little Chihuahua Doxie mix who needs a bit of extra love and attention because she had to be taken away from mom early.
From what I’ve been told, signs of inbreeding don’t always show up in the first generation,…It can take several generations before there is trouble so we are hopeful that Petal will be just fine. But we have concerns because the mother dog is quite aggressive with her which can indicate a physical defect.
We need to get her into a foster home where we can get a more accurate evaluation for a few weeks before we send her to a forever home. She will need someone who can keep an eye on her during the day and make sure she is fed at least 3 times daily, preferably 4.
