GSD Older dog guarantee

[armauro]

I purchased a top of the line titled show GSD who was 12 months at the time last June from a top breeder who goes unmentioned-the breeders contract did not exactly fit this deal as most dogs are bought as puppies- I had him four months when he started to become sick- cow piles stool which was diagnosed over the next 5 months by several vets as everything from giardia to EPI because he has low TLI scores but within range.
My expenses to day are $5,000 including the latest treaments at the Univof Fla which finally diagnosed him with food intolerances and plasmacytic lymphocystic enterocolitis which is common to GSDs which now requires prednisone/tylan for treatment maybe for life and a complete diet change with a new protein source. I should have gone to the vet school from the beginning but..... they were even hesitant to do the complete endoscopy at first.

My question to you all is shouldnt the breeder be liable for some if not all of these expenses out of principle! I did not make this dog sick and he probably had the beginning signs when we got him last June. I perservered to solve his problems and get a diagnosis and ultimately treatment.

[BlackGSD]

From the sounds of what is written above, I would say no. You had the dog for 4 MONTHS before you saw anything "off". What makes you think the breeder knew there was something wrong when they still had the pup?

[littledmc17]

I agree with Tracy

[Chris Wild]

Also agree with Tracy.

Depending on the contract, if the breeder offers a health warranty against genetic conditions, the breeder may be liable for a refund of your purchase price. But no, the breeder should not be liable for the vet costs. Most good contracts will specifically state that the breeder is no liable for vet costs, only refund, if a genetic health problem crops up.

While this situation is unfortunate, this is a risk EVERYONE takes when purchasing a living creature. Sometimes dogs get sick. Sometimes health problems, even genetic ones, appear later in life and no one could have predicted it or prevented it. And sometimes those things are expensive to treat. It sucks, but this is part of the risk inherent in dog ownership. If you can prove the breeder knowingly sold you a sick dog, you may have recourse in small claims court. But from the sounds of it, there is no way the breeder knew the dog was sick at the time you purchased the dog.

[Smithie86]

Agree with the above. Did you ahev the dog checked out right after you took possession?

[rokanhaus]

If you had him 4 months before the dog showed any signs of illness, then in my opinion, you can't blame the breeder for selling you a sick dog. Certainly some genetic issues do not show their ugly heads until the dog matures, but if the dog was healthy at time of sale, especially being an older dog, there is no way the breeder could have predicted such issues.

What does the contract say as far as a health guarantee?? I have no experience with plasmacytic lymphocystic enterocolitis. Allergies for example, can have many causes such as genetic inheritance, vaccine intolerance, or just plain dumb luck. If a dog with allergies came from parents who had no allergies, I would have to say you can't blame the breeder if you end up with a dog with allergies, if you trusted this breeder to put forth the effort to produce healthy dogs. Different story of the parents showed signs of allergies, or were known to widely produce them...

I know when I buy an adult dog, if the dog is healthy when I recieve it, and then something develops later, I would take that as simply a part of life. When you are dealing with live animals you have to accept that health issues can arise that cannot be predicted or prevented so matter how careful you are.

That said, business is business. And if the breeder cares about doing good business, and you are a reasonable person...I stress reasonable because there are some people you can never make happy....then in my opinion she should work with you somehow to make you happier about doing business with her, irregardless of what any contract says she or he is liable for.

I don't think the breeder owes you FULL reimbursement for medical expenses. Again, we are dealing with live animals here. You recieved the dog healthy and he remained healthy for 4 months. When you buy a car, it runs good, you sign and accept the warranty. If 4 months later the transmission goes, and it is out of warranty, technically you are SOL. But, if the dealer if reputable, they should do something to help ease the pain of the repair bill, as a good transmission should not just "go" after only 4 months of driving it.

Dog is TITLED by 12 months of age??? what titles???

[NWS_Haven]

I also agree with the above BUT alot of it depends on the breeder. I took back a kitten that a woman had a 1 1/2 months before she told me that it wasn't gaining weight or growing. I took it back immediately and the vet's diagnoses was general neglect and lack of nutrition. I spend a couple of hundred dollars in vet bills on that kitten and than gave it to one of the other vets at the clinic who was in love with Bengals. She's fat and healthy now but her body structure looks stunted.

I also returned half of this persons' money because 1. She wouldn't stop harassing and 2. I had no solid proof that the kitten wasn't genetically stunted. In all honesty, I was ready to kill her because it took that long to contact me to tell me something was up. She did have her checked within three days of sale per the contract and nothing was found to be wrong with the kitten at that time either.

Okay....that's my rant of the day.

[armauro]

I am just floating this idea- I have not asked the breeder for $$ but they were willing to take him back two months ago but never spoke to a refund of $- but we are bonded to him and him to us plus our second GSD is attached to him. I guess I am lucky that we have the money to have paid these bills all along as these vets fumbled over themselves except for the Florida Vet School. It has been a very frustrating expensive experience in the world of vetinary medicine.

[Alto]

Have you been in contact with the breeder through this ordeal?
If not, I'd send a lengthy email along with the vet report & see what develops - the breeder may surpise you.

While this is an older pup, I'd still expect some sort of breeder involvement, especially as early symptoms of IBD, while minor are not nonexistant; this is also a known disorder in GSD's so likely has a genetic component (ie important for breeders to be involved with these issues).

I wouldn't expect the breeder to stand for any vet expenses (unless you worked very closely with the breeder through all of this & discussed treatment options & where to go next) but partial to full refund of the dogs purchase price or offer of a replacement pup... alot depends on what sort of contract was signed.
IMO the contract should've been modified to fit this circumstance (older pup) as this breeder does keep back & sell older pups, young adult and titled dogs on a regular basis.

I hope your boy does better now that he's finally been diagnosed.
Given his age, I'd want to move him off the pred once his symptoms are under control, I'd start him on supplements & joint support as soon as possible as his digestive issues mean that he hasn't been getting proper nutrition (likely all his life).

N-Acetyl-D-glucosamine has shown good results in Crohn's patients ( The protective mucus in the gastrointestinal tract consists of glycoproteins, a protein backbone with carbohydrate side chains. Half of these carbohydrate side chains consist of N-acetyl glucosamine (NAG). ), a friend has used Chitaq (a liquid formulation) with great success in IBD cats/dogs.

[Alto]

Quote:It has been a very frustrating expensive experience in the world of vetinary medicine.

It's not just VM, my SIL spent 2 years in & out of hospitals with potential Crohn's diagnosis being tossed about (she lost neraly 30% of her body weight & was < 105lb to start) - in the end, the consensus was not Crohn's but "IBD" (which is really just a descriptive term of the symptoms, not any sort of diagnosis).
This is just a really tough thing to sort out - in case you haven't read this one.

Re the breeder, communication is a 2 way street, let them know that you want to keep the dog but would like to discuss a refund etc ...