Faulty dog

bestyman

Hi all,

Below is pasted a copy of a complaint letter that I am about to post. Any comments or criticism is appreciated.
The dog was technically not purchased but a donation of £250 was made. I have put purchased in the letter as according to the dictionary purchased means to obtain goods in exchange for money. The donation was compulsory in that no £250 = no dog.
Thanks in advance.

Notice of intended legal action

On the xxxxxxxxx I visited your establishment and purchased a xxdogxxx named xxxx for the price of £250.
The dog was described as been in good health and been examined by a qualified vet the previous day.
On the xxxxxxx insurance proposal that you completed, in answer to the question ‘About the animal including any known illnesses’ your reply was “Health check OK”. You also signed the declaration which was “The above animal has been examined by our veterinary surgeon or veterinary nurse and is in good health and free from any defect or infirmity other than as disclosed above ( none disclosed). “
Only fifteen days later I took the dog to my Vet (xxxxx xxxxxx), and as you can see from the attached report she was not in good health:
1. The dog’s teeth are in poor condition requiring dental work leaving her at the surgery for a day.
2. The dog has chronic ear problems; the vet stated that this was a long term and ongoing problem with no simple cure, other than to use ear drops every two weeks indefinitely.
3. The dog has a murmur in her heart and the Vet recommended that she be checked annually to see if she is deteriorating.
4. The dog has a hernia in her stomach; again the recommendation was to monitor the situation.
The above conditions certainly did not occur since I purchased the dog. Clearly the dog was not as described at the time of purchase and was not in good health. As a consequence of this we have already had treatment for the dog’s ear, arranged dental treatment at a cost of £138 and further treatment is needed in the future.
Your offer of a refund if the dog is returned is not acceptable as this is unfair to the dog and would cause her more unnecessary stress and suffering. Not only that, she is now a part of our family, and we are very reluctant to send her back.
To resolve this matter amicably, I am prepared to accept £250 if paid within 7 days. This will be in full and final settlement, regardless of any veterinary fees I incur in the future.
If this matter goes to court I will apply for all ongoing costs of any veterinary treatment that the dog may require as a result of pre existing medical conditions and should the dog die prematurely I would require full reimbursement. I will also claim for any legal fees and a reasonable amount for my time.
I enclose a copy of our vet`s findings and also a copy of the insurance proposal/declaration of good health signed by yourself.
Should you require any further medical reports for the dog, I am happy to obtain these, but any costs incurred and a charge for my time will be passed to yourself.
Should I not receive a full refund within the next 7 days, I will have no option than to issue proceedings in the county court.

Regards

maninthestreet

bestyman wrote: »

Hi all,

Below is pasted a copy of a complaint letter that I am about to post. Any comments or criticism is appreciated.
The dog was technically not purchased but a donation of £250 was made. I have put purchased in the letter as according to the dictionary purchased means to obtain goods in exchange for money. The donation was compulsory in that no £250 = no dog.
Thanks in advance.

Notice of intended legal action

On the xxxxxxxxx I visited your establishment and purchased a xxdogxxx named xxxx for the price of £250.
The dog was described as been in good health and been examined by a qualified vet the previous day.
On the xxxxxxx insurance proposal that you completed, in answer to the question ‘About the animal including any known illnesses’ your reply was “Health check OK”. You also signed the declaration which was “The above animal has been examined by our veterinary surgeon or veterinary nurse and is in good health and free from any defect or infirmity other than as disclosed above ( none disclosed). “
Only fifteen days later I took the dog to my Vet (xxxxx xxxxxx), and as you can see from the attached report she was not in good health:
1. The dog’s teeth are in poor condition requiring dental work leaving her at the surgery for a day.
2. The dog has chronic ear problems; the vet stated that this was a long term and ongoing problem with no simple cure, other than to use ear drops every two weeks indefinitely.
3. The dog has a murmur in her heart and the Vet recommended that she be checked annually to see if she is deteriorating.
4. The dog has a hernia in her stomach; again the recommendation was to monitor the situation.
The above conditions certainly did not occur since I purchased the dog. Clearly the dog was not as described at the time of purchase and was not in good health. As a consequence of this we have already had treatment for the dog’s ear, arranged dental treatment at a cost of £138 and further treatment is needed in the future.
Your offer of a refund if the dog is returned is not acceptable as this is unfair to the dog and would cause her more unnecessary stress and suffering. Not only that, she is now a part of our family, and we are very reluctant to send her back.
To resolve this matter amicably, I am prepared to accept £250 if paid within 7 days. This will be in full and final settlement, regardless of any veterinary fees I incur in the future.
If this matter goes to court I will apply for all ongoing costs of any veterinary treatment that the dog may require as a result of pre existing medical conditions and should the dog die prematurely I would require full reimbursement. I will also claim for any legal fees and a reasonable amount for my time.
I enclose a copy of our vet`s findings and also a copy of the insurance proposal/declaration of good health signed by yourself.
Should you require any further medical reports for the dog, I am happy to obtain these, but any costs incurred and a charge for my time will be passed to yourself.
Should I not receive a full refund within the next 7 days, I will have no option than to issue proceedings in the county court.

Regards

You can't expect to get a refund if you refuse to return the 'goods' to the retailer!

martinthebandit

maninthestreet wrote: »

You can't expect to get a refund if you refuse to teturn the 'goods' to the retailer!

thats what I thought too

Barneysmom

Send the letter regardless. They were clearly not looking after the dog while it was in their care. They should have spotted all those things, poor dog.
At least now he has you to care for him.

babyblooz

Why wasn't this dog purchased in the normal way? Why the 'compulsary donation' thing? That sounds a bit iffy to start with to me.

Mrs_Arcanum

Probably a rescue dog.

Is this from a local rescue/re-homing sanctuary or one of the national organisations?

shaun_from_Africa

Why the 'compulsary donation' thing? That sounds a bit iffy to start with to me.

This is how the RSPCA have done it for as long as I can remember.
You don't buy an animal from them, but you adopt one and make a donation when you collect it.
I wouldn't be surprised if it's done this way to save on income tax and/or VAT.

RSPCA website on the adoption process.

If all goes well, you are asked to make a minimum donation of £100.00 for dogs aged over 1 year, and £120 for dogs aged 1 year and and under

robpw2

I think the tone of your letter is all wrong , the company concnerned are a charity , and the donation helps the charity pay for the cost of rehoming etc
You cannot expect to keep the dog and get a full refund ,
I think you need to decide what the top priorty is here , the dog or the refund , if you want to keep the dog then i think you should just except it as one of those things and show the dog you love it by offering it a good home and an amazing life.
If the money is more of a concern and the way you describe said dog as faulty etc then you need to return the dog to the place you found it and hope that they will give your donation back .

pimento

If you were buying a second hand car (rather than a second hand dog) you'd have it checked by a mechanic. Why not get your second had dog checked by your own vet before parting with the money?

Mrs_Arcanum

robpw2 wrote: »

I think the tone of your letter is all wrong , the company concnerned are a charity , and the donation helps the charity pay for the cost of rehoming etc
You cannot expect to keep the dog and get a full refund ,
I think you need to decide what the top priorty is here , the dog or the refund , if you want to keep the dog then i think you should just except it as one of those things and show the dog you love it by offering it a good home and an amazing life.
If the money is more of a concern and the way you describe said dog as faulty etc then you need to return the dog to the place you found it and hope that they will give your donation back .

Think the issue really is the lies told by the place she got the dog from. Any genuine animal lover would be outraged by the negligence this place has shown towards an animal with long term health problems. In no way is this the same as purchasing a TV where you can expect a refund if you return this to the shop.

Would be more concerned about reporting the obvious lack of care towards the animals they have. At the cost of a £250 "donation" this seems to be run as a business more than a rescue place.

shaun_from_Africa

If you were buying a second hand car (rather than a second hand dog) you'd have it checked by a mechanic. Why not get your second had dog checked by your own vet before parting with the money?

But if you were buying a second had car for £250, would you still want to spend another £60 or £70 on getting it inspected?