We purchased Xena from a litter whelped by Mr. Big (Silver Lab) and Lavish Party (Chocolate Lab)…read moreback in 2018 from an August 16, 2018 litter. She picked us and was an immediate keeper. We went through the process and dealt with Giardia issue successfully. Less than two years later, Xena developed an intense case of Furnucles, large pustules between her toes on all four feet. The vet told us that this is an immune issue and that food and/or environmental issues were the issue. We took all this to heart and fed her a healthy diet. It didn't help and she was put on Apoquel that worked well for the most part, but compromised her immune system. We tried several times to contact Steve and Melody regarding the furnucles to ask if either of the parents had a similar issue. We got no resonse. Jump forward to October 31, 2025 when she stopped eating. We had a CBC test done and her liver values were almost 1,900 when they should be between 1 and 118. We tried contacting Hoof n Paw again to ask if there were any liver issues with either of the parents and again got no response. We used a holistic vet for the past 3 months and got her liver value down to 244. Her bilirubin (enzyme from the gall bladder that feeds the liver) was also very high, but with the supplements the holistic vet employed, things were improving. Via multiple blood tests, intolerance tests, and numerous other tests, it was determined she suffered from severe immune distress. To evaluate her liver more closely, we had a biopsy done. Her liver was covered with nodules (non-cancerous) and her gall bladder was squeezed so tightly between two of the liver lobes that the gall bladder was not functioning correctly. She was diagnosed with Copper Storage Disease, also a genetic disposition. We tried contacting Hoof n Paw again to find out if either of the parents had this issue and again they never responded. Early last week, she stopped eating again. She began to poop black, gelatinous stool around the house and had an obsession with needing to eat snow. By this past Tuesday, she was lethargic, not eating, and began having difficulty climbing the stairs. This was an agile, athletic, 7 year old lab that had dissipated into a fragile, unhealthy dog that had difficulty functioning. On Thursday, January 29th,, 2026 we brought her to Woburn Animal Hospital with a rapid heartbeat and pale gums. After an ultrasound and multiple blood tests, we got the call from the doctor. Her liver was now in Cirrhotic, her red blood cells were clumping and dropping by the hour, she had Pancreatitis and an inflammation of the stomach. The doctor said she would need to be hospitalized and receive multiple blood transfusions, giving her only a 50/50 chance of survival, and of the 50% that do survive the transfusions, only 1/3 of those dogs would survive. We made the incredibly difficult decision to euthanize her. There were 6 of us in the room at the time. She laid there with her eyes wide open, not blinking, and tears streaming from her eye while her whole body violently shook. She was gone within minutes. I barely made it to the front desk to pay. The girl at the desk printed up the bill, held it to here chest, smiled, and said, "You want to guess how much this cost"? Too disgusted to respond, I told her to run the card and shut up. Xena was the smartest Lab we owned over the last 35 years, spent 24 hours a day with us, slept under the blankets with me every night, always knew if someone needed her comfort, and was obedient and as much a family member as any of our kids. She tried as hard as we were to try and get better. As sad a story as this is, it makes us wonder if there was something we could have done or her had Hoof n Paw responded even once to give some information that may have helped. I am 62 and have lost dogs before, but never half way through their life, and never a dog as loyal and loving as Xena. As much as we want to get a dog from Hoof n Paw that may carry her blood line, common sense will not allow us to do so. In the end, this felt like we bought a car and as soon as we drove off the lot, we weren't even a memory - just another sale. We loved Xena with all our hearts, but do not recommend Hoof n Paw. Their communication practices are beyond sub-par.
