B male in WV

[lvoss]

@Basenjimamma:

Just out of curiosity..how can there be a $5000 penalty? Do the breeder keep you credit card on file? Please bear with me, I am extremely blond on this one, I just don't understand.

It is breach of contract and they can take you to small claims court to recover the amount.

[Basenjimamma]

i see, I kind of thought that it was something like that, but didn't know for sure.

[tanza]

Interesting… I would never consider a penalty clause... yikes... And I have contracts on all of my pups. Now I do have first right of refusal if for any reason the dog/bitch needs to be rehomed for any reason, any age. I would hope that people would respect that and contact me if that was the case.

[Rita Jean]

I think that is much better what Pat does on her contract then to have what I would call a (MONEY) clause. Yes I also would hope that people would respect the contract and call the breeder back if something happen.

Rita Jean

[Basenjimamma]

I would hope people do, but look at the few that come on here that has issues and wanting to rehome, and when they are asked if they have contacted their breeder, most haven't yet. Shouldn't talking to your breeder be the first thing you do when you are looking to rehome or having certain problems with the B? I would think so, trust me I did, when Otis' parents were questioned, I was on the phone and emailing the breeder within that afternoon. I am very much…I want answers and I want them now though..

[tanza]

Many times a B might wind up in rescue because the owners didn't contact the breeder… however it could be for a number of reasons. I think the biggest is that they are embarrassed to call the breeder telling them for whatever reason they need to give up their pet. Or they have not stayed in touch with their breeder or lost the contact infomation. And of course there are breeders that are unwilling to take back their dogs... it is usually only a responsible breeder that has a contract. And then there are the ones that do contact the breeder and then get upset when they find out that their pet might be a kennel dog until rehomed?..... so then they go to BRAT and do not disclose the breeders name. Many organizations will find out the breeder if possible and let them know that one of their pups is being given up... and responsible breeders will step up and take the pup or make arrangements for someone else to take the pup.

I did have one of my puppy owners contact our local club looking to place his pup... of course they called me.. and I called the owner. When I asked how come he just didn't call me first it was totally a case of being embarrassed... of course he was double embarrassed cause when he contacted local rescue.. they of course called me. But it all worked out fine in the end

On the subject of a money clause... I guess this is a good reason many people have a bad taste about some breeders and what their demands might or might not be... For me the most important thing is the home first and the happiness/well being of the pup. Not if the pup is shown in the show ring, doing performance events, and/or possible breeding. If a male, I might request not neutering until I was able to collect semen to keep frozen, but other then that I really do not put demands on owners other then to provide a happy, safe home.

[hdolbow]

we got our first two from the newspaper. i found the original breeder about 6 months after one got hit by a car and we thought we might want another. she didn't even know and said the guys still acted like they had the dogs when she'd talk to them. so i'd think people dont want to pay 1000 a pup (which is what that breeder charged) and then give them up. I'm not sure if Dan paid anything for them or not but i would assume thats how some people think and want to get some money back maybe.

[tanza]

I have a different feeling about getting money back when/if you have to give up your dog for whatever reason. To be able to place that pup back with the breeder where you know he/she will be cared for and safe is worth any price.. IMO. But I agree with you.. that people sometime want money in return… However, they should think about that before they buy and also read the contracts closely. If there is something in there that makes them uncomfortable, then they need to question it and/or understand that if they sign the contract they need to respect and follow it.

[Basenjimamma]

I see the embarassement factor in this situation, yes..it is almost like admitting defeat, of course depending on why your are letting the dog go. Either way the poor dog gets caught in the middle.

[tanza]

@Basenjimamma:

I see the embarassement factor in this situation, yes..it is almost like admitting defeat, of course depending on why your are letting the dog go. Either way the poor dog gets caught in the middle.

Exactly… but to address the "embarrassment" factor... when it is something like financial.. certainly can understand and understand embarrassment, because 99% of the time they do not want to give up the pup, but have to. When it is due to (and way to many for this reason) because we now have a child and it is much to hard to work with the dog... or we never worked with the dog before hand and now he/she is out of control... I would image that the breeder may or may not make some comment... I would be hard pressed not to...

I know of a case that someone had a B girl for 10 yrs... then had a "surprise" human child... the B was never socialized well and especially not with children... they gave the girl up because it was too much trouble to work with the dog and the child.... those really get to me.

[lvoss]

@Rita:

I think that is much better what Pat does on her contract then to have what I would call a (MONEY) clause. Yes I also would hope that people would respect the contract and call the breeder back if something happen.

Rita Jean

The only way the clause is enforceable in a court of law is if there is a monetary amount stated. Even if the clause is broken the breeder will not get the dog back. If the breeder contacted a contract attorney to help them write the contract the advice they would have been given is to put a monetary figure in for breach of contract. Usually the amount is whatever the maximum in small claims court for the state is.

[lvoss]

I think alot of people don't contact the breeder when problems first begin because they think to themselves, "I can handle this" then the problem starts to snowball and they are embarrassed to contact the breeder and tell them things haven gotten so far. Then if still hasn't resolved they really don't know how to tell the breeder they think they need to give the dog up.

I try to email my puppy people a few times a year and this year I even started a yahoo group so if they would like they can swap stories there though most are pretty silent. I hope that by contacting everyone periodically that if there is a problem they will tell me. So far, I have had pretty good luck getting updates. Kind of funny the last time Heart and her half brother Zeke who live 400 miles apart both got skunked in the same week. Both full in the face and both ran right in the dog door and proceeded to rub the lovely odor all over the bed and pillow. YUCK! The owners told me just to let me know that in the future they will remember that dogs in bed are much better than dogs going into the backyard at 4am to find skunk.

[Vicki]

The skunk story is hilarious.