Originally Posted by Yorkiemom1  As a breeder, my primary concern is for any baby I bring into this world. Thank God, I have healthy dogs, from very long lines of healthy dogs, having healthy puppies. But you can always have something crop up with any puppy your have brought into the world. I staunchly believe and stand firmly on the belief that each one of my babies is MY ultimate responsibility, and as a person with a Christian attitude, I believe I can not sell a puppy and then watch that baby become ill and watch people that TRUSTED and BELIEVED in me and my ability and knowledge to produce a baby for them, end up with enormous vet bills and a baby that is anything less than what I sold him as. I know my buyers very well by the time they get their baby from me....I have weeded out scam artists and phoneys by the time they have submitted the application interview and we have talked. Our relationship deepens and stregthens as the weeks go by. These people TRUST me......I trust THEM. So in the two instances where I had people contact me about a health issue that had developed as the pups grew, even though the illnesses were NOT life threatening, they were a major expense. I did NOT offer to take the puppy back and replace the baby, I would have immediately taken my baby back if they had suggested that....but these owners adore their little babies....so in one case, I refunded 50% of the purchase price, and paid all the vet bills and continue to pay for the annual check up related to that issue. In the other situation, I again paid for all the vet bills, diagnostic testing and the surgery that was indicated. Again not a life threatening condition, but these people were not trying to jack me around and get a free pup or free medical care...my baby that I sold to them as a healthy pup, developed a condition that required surgery, and as a Christian formost, and a breeder with integrity and ethics,, I felt I needed to do this for my baby and my owners. I have to look at my face everytime I look in a mirror, and I felt I needed to do this. While this situation may not be covered "in your contract" , as a breeder, your reputation depends on your customer service. Your customers can absolutely "make or break" you. If this was me, I would do no less than refund half the price of the baby, who this owner is obviously attached to, and I would pay for the vet bills. I would be in contact with the specialists that was seeing the pup, getting first hand information about diagnosis and prognosis and required treatments. If that puppy does indeed have a congenital issue that could possibly lead to blindness in the future (?? maybe??), I would want these people singing my praises from the roof tops, rather than reporting me to every organization and breed club they could find, as well as the BBB, and last but not least, ON YT!!!!!! THIS Yorkie forum is read all over the world....a bad rap on this site can do you a lot of damage. It would be a lot cheaper to make these people happy and whole! |