View Full Version : I was sold a sick basset hound puppy
Bullfury19
Sep 22, 2013, 05:22 AM
One of my neighbors came to my house and asked me if I would like to breed my male Basset hound with his female. I agreed and the terms were I would get one of the puppies. 2 months later he calls me and tells me that 10 were born. 4 weeks later I pick the one I wanted, but he calls me a week later to tell me he died for unknown reasons. He then asked me to take another one that very same day. I took the puppy and was told he had been given the parvovirus and parasite shots. He also said that the puppy's next. Is it to the vet should be in 2 weeks. I asked for records and I was given the label with no date on it. The puppy dies 2 1/2 days later from hook worms. I took him to the vet and spent $350 but could not save him. I live in Texas, what can I do?
joypulv
Sep 22, 2013, 05:31 AM
You can try Small Claims, but I don't see where you paid for a puppy, only vet bills.
Without a written contract including a guarantee, the judge would have a tough time awarding you any monetary damages.
It's probably worth the filing fee, however. Look at your state.gov website.
(You really took the pup at 5 weeks old?)
Bullfury19
Sep 22, 2013, 05:38 AM
The puppy was 6 weeks old, remembering correctly. I found out that 3 other puppies also died. The guy who bought the puppy from me never paid me, understandably, so I lost $500 and helped this guy with $100 at the vet. I have pictures of the breeders holding the puppy and now they are saying that we took too long in taking him to the vet. The puppy would not eat on the third day and we took him to see the Vet. We were told he needed a blood transfusion that costs $1800, which we could not afford.
joypulv
Sep 22, 2013, 05:46 AM
Small Claims won't acknowledge your lost sale, I'm pretty sure. Even the $100 (what was $350?) probably won't go over. Small Claims judges can vary in their decisions that aren't cut and dry legal precedent.
You just should have known more about your neighbor, sorry. Poor dogs!
Bullfury19
Sep 22, 2013, 05:55 AM
Thanks for your time. It was difficult to see him die. He let out a horrible scream and then passed. The hook worms had drawn all his blood which showed by no color in his gums. The pain that it caused the other family who has a 5 yr. old girl was sad since it was her first puppy. Instead of me making a few bucks, I've lost and had to witness a horrible experience. Thanks again!
LadySam
Sep 22, 2013, 10:21 AM
" 4 weeks later I pick the one I wanted, but he calls me a week later to tell me he died for unknown reasons. He then asked me to take another one that very same day. I took the puppy"
This looks like you took the puppy at 5 weeks.
And if $350 was spent at the vets and $100 of that was yours then I am assuming that the other $250 was spent by the prospective buyer of "your" puppy. Hence, the prospective buyer could go after you for his money.
That makes sense to me.
I do think the burden of proof is on you, without something in writing I don't know how you will prove anything. You didn't lose $500, your stud fee was the puppy of your choice.
The first mistake you made was not investigating the female dogs owner's vet records for animals past and present.
Did you guys even do any research? Are both dogs genetically and emotionally sound, do they meet breed requirements for conformation, etc.
You got no records only a sticker, odds are he never took them to the vet, he vaccinated them himself and he vaccinated them too early. At 5 weeks the antibodies from mom are strong enough in the puppies system to cause the vaccines to be ineffective. I don't know a vet that would vaccinate that early. That doesn't mean that he didn't find one that would, but he would have had a record for you.
Deworming should start and 2 weeks of age, then again at 4, 6, and 8 weeks.
The only losers I see here are a 5 year old child, and a litter of puppies.
Lucky098
Sep 22, 2013, 11:12 AM
This is why you should leave the breeding up to the breeders who show their dogs.
You're not going to be able to sue anyone.. The agreement was to breed for the price of a puppy (Whatever that is). Puppies die... that is why breeding is not always easy. And unless you can prove that the female dog's owner did no preventative (which is not REQUIRED) such as vaccines and de-worming, than you're screwed basically.
You could try small claims.. but I think you'd be spending more money in fighting this than what it's worth.. Just because you were given sick puppies, does not give you the right to sue. It is not REQUIRED or AGAINST the law to sell puppies without the required vaccines.. That is why you spend so much money on a puppy from a quality breeder.
Next time you find yourself in a situation like this, before you sign the contract or agree to breed for a puppy, get the puppy health checked. If you decide to NOT neuter, than the next time someone wants to breed to your dog, MAKE THEM GIVE YOU A HEALTH CERTIFICATE! Inspect the home, etc.. . or Neuter your dog and avoid this problem all together. Just because Fido is an awesome dog, doesn't mean he should be bred.
But please, neuter your dog... You and the other party have no business breeding if parasite ridden puppies are being produced.
Alty
Sep 23, 2013, 03:19 PM
This is another case of backyard breeding, both you and your neighbor. Like Lucky said, just because you love your dog, and think he's great, that doesn't make him breed quality. You can't even afford an $1800 vet bill to save a puppy, which means you cannot afford to breed responsibly.
Obviously genetic testing wasn't done before breeding. Basset hounds have tons of genetic defects, eye issues, hip issues, back issues because they're long backed dogs, and ear issues. Did you test for any of this with your dog, did the neighbor do testing on his? No.
Now you're all shocked that the puppies died. You didn't even know enough to know that puppies need to stay with their mother for at least 8 weeks before being sold. In many places it's illegal to sell or re-home a puppy before they're 8 weeks old. Five weeks is way too young.
Have your dog neutered. You can't prove that it was the neighbors fault that these puppies had issues. Also, the puppy was taken away from it's mother far too early, which was your fault and your neighbors. You're both to blame here. Live and learn, and please, learn!