[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by Ladyhawk

Are you suggesting that we guarantee against everything as the dog gets older? No one can predict that a dog will never go blind, or deaf, or have some health problem down the road. We can only say that as a puppy this dog can hear, see and has been found healthy by our vet. I had a dog that became paralyzed at 6 years old because of a weak disk in his back that slipped and severed a nerve. The weakness had apparently always been there but hadn't caused a problem until that time. I never thought about going back to the breeder and blaming them. Ruffles was a wonderful pet for 6 years and it was just something that happened. He was a living being not a mechanical creation, he wasn't created by a human and couldn't be warrented by one.

No..I'm not saying that. But many breeders give a one year guarantee against life-threatening congenital defects. I don't think that is enough. I want at least a one year guarantee against ALL congenital defects (although I really like that Brooklynn offers a 3 yeat guarantee). Most congenital defects are not life-threatening as I said before. Blindness and deafness are not always congenital...a lot of that naturally comes with age..but I was talking about the puppy being born blind or deaf or developing it at a very early age. I just think using the phrase "life-threatening" puts a loophole there for the breeder to get out of taking responsibility...they could easily say "well, it's not life threatening - that's surgery is optional" for almost anything.

A lot of genetic things don't show up until the dog is much older...I'm not saying the breeder needs to refund money on a 6 year old dog that develops diabetes or MVD...although an ethical breeder will want you to keep in touch and report any health issues that eventually show up. By contract, I'm supposed to report to the breeder any health issues that my youngest cat develops during her lifetime...she's over a year old now. I don't expect her breeder to refund or replace her if she all of a sudden has some health problem arise...but she does want to know so she can keep records and explore what's going on in her lines..and if she needs to make any changes she will.