Man Buys Toy Poodles, Learns They’re Ferrets on Steroids

Can You Imagine? They do look alike..

A man from Catamarca took bargain shopping to a new extreme when he purchased what he thought to be a pair of Toy Poodles from the La Salada market in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  The man learned the hard way that his reasonably priced dogs were not what they seemed to be.

According to a Buenos Aires news report, the man took his new “Poodles” to the veterinarian for vaccinations and received the shocking news. The veterinarian revealed that the pair were actually ferrets on steroids. The veterinarian believes that the two were given steroids at birth to increase their size and alter their physical features to resemble the in-demand dog breed.  The disguised ferrets were also groomed to look fluffy like a Toy Poodle.

This is not the first time a perspective buyer was duped into believing they were purchasing a pure bred dog for a bargain price. Previously, a local TV station reported that a woman believed she was buying a Chihuahua for a fraction of the cost, but it was also a ferret.

Not only is this an unjust practice, it is detrimental to the health of ferret being put on steroids. “From an animal welfare standpoint, it’s atrocious,” says Ashley Gallagher, a veterinarian at Friendship Hospital for Animals in Washington, D.C. “You are unnecessarily injecting this poor little ferret with [steroids] to alter its physique.”

If you’re on the market for a Poodle, we compiled a list of ways to tell the difference between a Toy Poodle and a ferret so you don’t make the mistake:  Read More