I have much to say/share on this unfortunate situation. First, let me say that I am so very sorry that your babies are fighting illness/disease. I have been where u r and I feel your pain, sense of helplessness and anger on behalf of your suffering dog. I will tell everyone what my policy is and state that many breeders are the same or quite similar. 1) under NO circumstances will I ever require a puppy be returned to me in order to receive a health warranty refund. My thought/belief is the puppy is with a family who loves and adores it. What could possibly be gained for the puppy/dog to be removed from its family? I feel it is far better to leave the dog in the arms of the family who loves them. 2) I refund up to the cost of the puppy for debilitating diseases/conditions, etc. Once, I placed a pup and we had been having horridly humid weather. Ears can become yeasty very quickly in such weather. I am quite diligent in checking ear health and even more so when humid weather hits. Well, Im not sure how but this little fella sprouted an ear infection that began manifesting 7 days after he joined his family. The mom called asking why the pup was scratching so badly. Did he have fleas? Lol. No, he is not have fleas. Long story short, I sent her to the vet and I paid for the visit and medication. She didnt find out I was paying until after the exam and she went to pay for everything. She called to tell me I didnt have to do that. The vet was also shocked. My reply to her wraps up how I see my part in my puppies lives: I know I dont have to. I know it isnt expected of me. I know some may feel this sets an unrealistic precedence, but I felt, in this situation, it was my responsibility to take care of it. Did I cause the ear infection? No. Did the ear infection bloom because of my neglect or poor husbandry? No. But for an ear infection to be that bad in such a short time, it was reasonable to think it may have started while under my care. If the ear infection had occurred a month later, my response would have been different. But I felt this was fair in this case and I was happy to take care of my baby. I know other breeders who have has Addisons raise its nasty head. Refunds were made. No questions asked. Pups remained with their families. I very recently had a pup come back to me with a very very mild case of ME: my first case ever. The pup is doing well and does not requires meds or any other considerations except that her food be prepared into a slurry. She will soon find her new home and the family is on the list for my next litter. I cried with that family as we all worked together to decide what was best for the pup. The family adored her and young children were involved. It broke my heart. But Willow needs 4 meals a day and that is not a reasonable thing to request of working parents with three children under the age of 6. I am in touch with this family constantly. I got Willow on track with her health, weight and fully stabilized. Now she is ready for her new home. There will be no charge for her. I am looking for the perfect family. During all this event with Willow, when did the family get their money back? The day after they called me with the diagnosis. I actually told them to have her checked for ME because I have a few kennel clients with the condition. I, of course, was devastated that one of my puppies was hit with this condition. Diligent research of my lines revealed no other cases of the disease and 3 different vets all agreed that this was a congenital case and not hereditary. I was so relieved but my attentions were always on what was best for Willow. There is the argument that the breeder didnt cause the disease. While this is true, breeders are responsible for what is considered to be the greatest causation: birth! If not for me, a puppy would not exist. If a situation arises such as Willows or Lexis, is it not my moral and ethical reasonability to contribute to the care and wellbeing of the life I caused to exist? I believe the answer is yes. If not for my actions, this pup would not be alive to suffer said condition. It just seems so simple to me. I dont see my thoughts/actions on these issues as heroic or special in any way. It is simply doing the decent thing. Demanding the puppy back is a clause in archaic contracts. I know breeders from many different breeds and only one of the 28 I know personally ask for the puppy back. She is beginning to come around to our way of thinking. She is a lovely person but older and sort of set in her ways. I respect her immensely as I have learned so much about whelping from her. I couldnt begin to repay her for her kindness to me. I believe my #1 priority/reasonability as a breeder is to provide a life of enrichment and quality care to my mommas and daddies and produce the healthiest pups possible via health testing and careful breeding matches. There are certain health conditions that should never occur in a program: PRA for instance. But that is a topic for another day. But when crap hits the fan, the only thing a breeder has is their honour. If a breeder expects to skate by and do the bare minimum....there will be consequences. How can a person think otherwise when we live in a world that is far more educated than they were many years ago. If a person expects to remain above reproach, it only makes sense that the person behave in a manner that is above reproach. Addisons is a nasty disease and even scientists are stumped. With all the research that has been done, a genetic marker should have been found. Sadly, this is not the case at this time. Breeders around the world are praying and hoping for the day that a marker is found so a genetic test can be developed for detection. The good news is that evidence shows that with each generation bred away from a known Addisons producer, the incidence of the disease is minimized exponentially. 3-4 gens away and a line can be expected to be relatively safe. But until the day a genetic marker is found, surely smart breeders will prepare for health issues that occur: Addisons or otherwise. I will also include in this somewhat digressing comment, that I a knowledge there will be situations in which a refund is not justly forthcoming. I had a puppy go to a home where they had planned to spend some time at their cabin on the lake. I told the family that under no circumstances was the puppy to be allowed in or near the water S the time of year was dangerous with giardia blooms and the puppy would become very ill. I even suggested they pick the puppy up after their cabin holiday. They were eager to get their puppy and so opted to collect him and take him to the cabin. 15 days later, that puppy was exceedingly ill. Vet bills reached upwards of $3,000 once the puppy was fully recovered. The family approached me for a refund. I declined. I warned them. And I reminded them that I had them sign a written clause in the contract that they would prevent the puppy from going into or near the water. They claimed they hadnt. I then sent them screen shots of pics of the puppy in the water and drinking the lake water they had posted in their FB page. My relationship with the family took time to heal but we r are all good now, thankfully. I think we can all agree that there are individual situations in which refunds are not warranted but outside of tho every rare cases, I think the breeder is better off to work with the owners to do what is necessary to provide the best of care for an ill pup. I am happy to answer my questions you guys have to the best of my ability. My heart and prayers are with Deborah Gough, Lexi and cooper and all families going through similar hardships. It rallys shouldnt be the case.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 00:07:55 +0000
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