How do I legally fight a breeder who sold me a puppy with worms?

Question

I bought a Queen Elizabeth Pocket Beagle on October 27th and the agreement was that I was to go to her house to pick her up in Virginia. I live in Pennsylvania. I drove down there and she changed the pick-up to where her son would drop the puppy off at a gas station. I got suspicious but after driving so long I went with it. This dog came with no papers, was dirty, smelled horrible, and had hookworms and roundworms. Neither the breeder nor her son could tell me anything about her history (shots, food, temperament, toys, etc.). I was so mad I called the dog law officer in Virginia to have her investigated and haven't heard anything back from them. What else can I do to get this woman out of business?

Answer 1

Really, the only thing left to do is gather up all the vet papers an information and take her to court.

If you still have the puppy, you may only get reimbursed for medical treatment OR you will have to return the puppy and a return of your money will be ordered, but you can not have both.

If I were you, I would call the Dog Law Office again and find out how the investigation is going. Worms are easily treated and inexpensive to treat, as well - I would forget about the lawsuit. Also, contact the ASPCA in Virginia and you may want to call the local police department and file a complaint just to have it on record.

I know there is a place you can contact to report BYB, but I'm sorry, I don't know it off hand, but will get it and post it as soon as I find it.

PLEASE LET THIS BE A LESSON TO ANYONE THINKING ABOUT BUYING A PUPPY SITE UNSEEN

ADD:
I found a couple of links that will be beneficial, but it doesn't look like it will be in your favor. I'm sorry.
http://www.malteseonly.com/lemon.html
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=600&sid=1285476

ADD #2: Here are a couple more sites with info. This one is provided by the ASPCA-page 47 has the Virginia Dog laws
http://www.aspca.org/site/DocServer/Lemon_Laws.pdf?docID=6741
This one has info on what to do about disreputable breeders.
http://www.goldendoodles.com/disreputablebreeders.htm

Answer 2

A "pocket beagle" is just a beagle that has been bred to be smaller, they're not an AKC registered breed. If you've paid for veterinary care, you need to keep your vet bills and go to small claims court. I don't know how much can be done without a contract. Was there ANY type of paperwork involved? I bought a beagle from a really crappy "breeder" and though I should have taken him back, he would have died from the hookworm and roundworm infestation he had. We did turn her in to the SPCA, they found over 30 pitbulls at her house and got fined out the wazoo for all of the things she had done wrong. Call the SPCA in the area that this breeder lives in and report her as well.

Answer 3

YOu could come back to Virginia and take her to court there is a lemon law taht says she has to give you a 10 day warranty and if the pup is found unfit due to health that you have 3 choices return the pup for a replacement pup, return the pup for a refund or keep the pup and attempt to cure upto the purchasse price.
Teh breeder is also suppose to provide teh first shots and wormings by Virginia law.
Look under the virginia agricullture laws and it's in there
I hate to say it but you should have investigated the breed first as there is no such thing as a pocket beagle and also should have gotten references from the breeder and asked for the vets number and address.
I wish you luck and also most pups are born with worms and reputable breeders would worm the pups at 2,4,6,8 and 10 weeks but these backyard breeders don't bother especially if it came in this condition.

Answer 4

Look up Lemon Laws in your state. Most states require a breeder to pay you for health issues like this, up to the price you payed for the pup, or replace the puppy for another healthy one. Save any bills from your vet you spend, and any papers you signed with the breeder for evidence. Take pictures if needed to.

It must have been very hard for you to not take this puppy if it was so bad off, rather then to leave it with such an uncaring person. Sorry to say you probably should have walked away from the sale, but I know that is easier to say then do so believe me I understand, I would want to "save" the dog too. Frankly though by taking and paying for the pup you just encourage these terrible breeders to do this again, walking away would have been better. Thank goodness it was only worms, something easily cured and not parvo or something else. Hopefully you can get this dog healthy quickly and be wiser for the lesson learned the hard way.

You defiantly have grounds for a small claims case, and maybe complaints to your SPCA as well. It may be past the time limit now though, some states it is only a few days after buy the a dog . Even if you don't win you may want to pursue a lawsuit to show the breeder they should not treat animals like that, and maybe get them investigated, even if you don't make up all your losses. If it were me I would sue just to give them a hard time, but it may take a long time to come to court and will be tried in Virginia so you need to take the time to go there. You may not be able to do this financially or time wise. Some byb only sell to out of state buyers so they can avoid law suit because they know people will most likely just give up. If you want to get her out of business, it may be a hard fight ahead.

Thanks for posting your experience, it will serve as a warning to other people about how not to get scammed by bad breeders. Tell every one you know who wants a dog what you did wrong too, maybe then some good can come out of this terrible experience. I hate to say this, but you have a great example of what NOT to do, and I can see why your "breeder" is "dodging" you now.

1) buying when you have not seen the parents and home
2)no vet records or vac records
3)third party handing dog off to you
4)not a "real" breed or from proven lines of dogs
5)Pup looks unclean or smelling bad
6)Not having history or sending home any puppy stuff
7)no contract for the sale
8)not dealing with you about the worms

Good luck to you and your puppy. I hope despite everything you have a long healthy life together from now on.

Answer 5

It's cheaper if you just take it to a vet and get de-wormer. As for "pocket beagles" I have never even heard of one. I doubt they are a recognized breed. It's a puppy mill/byb but unless the dog proves very very sick/dies you won't have much of a case. Try tracking down other people who have gotten dogs from them and band together.

add: I found a link about them and it looks like a "designer" breed that someone made up a good story for. You got scammed but unless you can get others who were scammed to pitch in you probably don't have a case.

add: They ARE a designer breed. I emailed the contact listed on the first page of the link below about which registry. No reply yet but they are claiming they are able to be registered. It looks like they are a cross between dachshund X beagle with maybe something else thrown in. I also asked about breeder requirements. They may be a club type thing that takes matters upon themselves.

add: Check your mail, and for the rest of the answers. The condition wasn't replied about, but the name is "trademarked" which I assume means they started their own registry for the little guys.

Answer 6

Hate to say it but you got scammed by a "puppy mill" breeder. It is doubtful that you could get your money back for the price of your dog let alone your vet expenses since it doesn't sound like you have a contract other than verbal. And that isn't worth the paper it's written on. You could try the court system but with no contract it's your word against hers and she could deny even breeding the puppy. Someone like this would have no qualms about lying under oath so unless you had a canceled check it's back to your word against hers. You should follow up with your complaint though. Remember, it takes time for an investigation to run it's course, it took 6 months to shut Vick down.

Answer 7

Being there's no such breed as a "Queen Elizabeth Pocket Beagle" I wouldn't expect you could get papers. You bought from a back yard breeder, you obviously have no health guarantee, there's nothing you can do. People are constantly being told to RESEARCH breeders to make sure they're reputable before buying. No reputable breeder would even think about dropping a puppy off at a gas station. A reputable breeder would have had you fill out a questionnaire to make sure you could provide a suitable home. They would have asked you a ton of questions and spelled out the contract and guarantees ahead of time. And the puppy would have been picked up at their house.

You can help by trying to educate people not to buy from back yard breeders like this one.

Answer 8

Its so important to check before you buy anything now a days. The puppy having worms is no big deal really as to every puppy born will develop worms at some point. You never should have purchased the puppy if it was in such poor condition you had a choice at that time to just say "no". I'm sorry to say this but they laid out the bait and you took it I Hope you learned from it. Just love the puppy as he/she should be a reminder everyday that things are not always what they seem from the outside looking in.

Answer 9

1) there is NO such thing as a Queen Elizabeth Pocket Beagle
2) sincet here is no Pocket Beagle there are no registration ppaers
3) nothing you can do about a puppy coming to you with worms
4) not much you can do since you have no contract and you bought the puppy even after you saw the conditions

Answer 10

well if you wnet to court you have no case unless you sign a paper that said she would sell you a puppy with no medical issues. always when you buy a puppy get the papers and sources that she/he got shots, and a vet paper that says the puppy is ok to be adopted. this person was a backyard breeder and only cared about the money just meet her and the dog next time before you buy and make sure it is not a backyard breeder, or a puppy mill. and that is not a breed it is a mix. so you most likely got the dog from a PUPPY MILL. never pick up your dog at a gas station!!!!!!! the person was not a breeder if she gave you the dog at a gas station no papers which i don't think there were for a POCKET BEAGEL or a desiner dog which came from a puppy mill. and did not let you see the dog until you picked it up.