They should be covering all vets fees and monies for all the upset. I would be thankful you weren't suing me if it was me.  I sincerely hope Lexi rallies you must be distraught.

To be honest as they have damaged the other peoples pup, then theirs is forfeited in the other family's favour and they should be thankful your not asking for the vets bills to be paid.

Fully agree.

I have never taken a deposit on a pup, although several potential buyers have asked to do so, I refuse to accept it, they pay in full when the pup actually leaves me and nobody but nobody holds a pup unless they're laid flat out on the floor themselves and then handed a pup plus they're are only allowed to hold the pup that is potentially theirs.

Dolly Dog I so wish you well with your Lexi xx

> They should be covering all vets fees and monies for all the upset.

Yes they should.
I know it's not a close comparison, but if you test drive a car at a dealer/garage, you have to sign insurance forms/disclaimers in case you have an accident while in charge of it behind the wheel.

The parents were legally responsible for their children's behaviour while in your home, and if an animal was injured by their children then you probably do have a right to claim for damages. Maybe ask Trevor Cooper for clarification... in my mind they owe you, and not the other way around.

>Now they had paid a fairly modest deposit into my bank account - I wouldn't let anyone do that again.    <br /><br />Am I wrong going by my gut instinct - how do I stand re deposit?<br /><br />Jo

I think this thread is getting confusing as there are two separate things going on. There is the dropped puppy and there is JoFlatcoats question about an unsuitable family. It might be better to make the unsuitable owners a separate thread.

FWIW if I deemed a family unsuitable for a puppy I would refund their deposit had they paid one. I am not really sure why you feel confusion about it. After all if the people had shown themselves to be unsuitable on the first visit you would not have taken a deposit. And presumably you will resell this pup to someone else so you will not have lost out financially. You say you wouldn't let people pay a deposit again as if you had not wanted a deposit but they had forced it on you? but  if they paid into your bank then you must have given them your bank details. This is a reason I never take deposits, so I can refuse to sell a puppy at any stage. if a deposit has been paid then a contract to supply a puppy has been created.

>if a deposit has been paid then a contract to supply a puppy has been created.

I have paid for gods in the past, and when the supplier has not been able to supply had a refund, so it seems not to be a problem, and this was with full payment for the goods.

So as I see it if you take a deposit making it clear it is non refundable unless you cannot supply a puppy for whatever reason (after all it could die, or as in this case be injured).  So returning the deposit cancels the contract :)

I know this can happen in al sorts of instances, concerts holiday or coach trips etc (usually because they are cancelled)

Dollydog, how is the pup now, and I hope the people who dropped her have offered to compensate for the damage done and your not now going to let them have the one they were going to have, as Lexi's potential owners deserve to have that one instead.

Sorry to get mixed up with the deposit issue.

I have just been through 2 months of being vetted by my breeder. We visited only after a month of conversations, e-mails etc. had i not been advised here that this was the sign of a good breeder i would have thought it excessive. But we visited - shoes off on the floor anti - bac gel on hands prior to handling. We were told we were being considered but that at any time until collection they could change their minds and would refund our deposit. At no time did i consider the puppy "mine"until we drove her home. Even now i am in regular contact and consider myself lucky to have one of their pups.  I am at a loss as to how they have the perceived right to expect either a puppy or a refund. They have demonstrated how completely unsuitable they are - not even by the awful incident but by their conduct and attitude after.

Everyday i am reminded of the responsibility i have taken on, maybe it is because I have read a lot of your threads and have a small understanding of the time effort money and dedication that goes into breeding. I honestly cannot understand where their heads are at.

>So as I see it if you take a deposit making it clear it is non refundable unless you cannot supply a puppy for whatever reason (after all it could die, or as in this case be injured).  So returning the deposit cancels the contract.

Yes the contract can be cancelled if you cannot supply the goods for some reason. However you cant cancel just because you have changed your mind and no longer want to supply the puppy

>I know this can happen in al sorts of instances, concerts holiday or coach trips etc (usually because they are cancelled)

Yes but if the concert holder, coach trip provider etc just decided they no longer wanted you to attend their event but the event was still going ahead then you could sue them for breach of contract.

As I said this thread is getting rather muddled. JoFlatcoats puppy is not injured she has just decided that the owners who paid the deposit are not suitable for one of her puppies. I am not disagreeing with her, just pointing out that having taken a deposit she has formed a contract with the buyers and she could in theory be sued for breach of that contract. I cannot see any reason for her to want to keep the deposit.

if a deposit has been paid then a contract to supply a puppy has been created.

Indeed. This was discussed elsewhere yesterday, and a case was mentioned where the breeder was taken to court by the person who had paid a deposit and then been refused a pup. It was mentioned the court is unlikely to make the breeder hand over  a puppy, although it could happen, but in the case in question the breeder had been made to pay damages and cost of a puppy.

Very strong reason for never taking deposits I'd say.

I once took a deposit for a pup as the family seemed very nice, then one of the children started to tell me about all the dogs they had had in the past, far to many. He than picked up a puppy and handled it very roughly. I immediately gave back the deposit and told the parents to sort out their children before they even though about a dog. A lucky escape methinks.

I'm stunned by how rude some prospective owners are in these posts, I wouldn't dream of handling a puppy without the breeders say so, or picking them up whilst standing, that's just an accident waiting to happen.
I'm afraid If I was breeding , a lot of people would be getting booted out the door lol.

I agree, when I went to see the litter of puppies that my current dog came from, I even asked if I was allowed to touch them. They were 5 weeks at the time.
Knowing how wriggly pups can be I automatically sat down before I was given my pup to cuddle. Perhaps that's the problem, people new to dogs and pups just don't realise that they are real and not some kind of fluffy toy!

I visited a friend yesterday with 3 week old pups, wasn't expecting to handle them, however I was handed a pup and it was wonderful. Sat next to the box with the mum sniffing them... And yes I went through a disinfectant process :-)
I'm not having one of these pups, but my god they are soooo lovely

Dolly dog - is there any update on how this puppy is doing? I do hope she's improved poor little soul x