Our new puppy has health and behavioural issues. Can I ask the breeder to foot the vet bill?
We have purchased a labradoodle puppy with, despite assurances from the breeder, two ongoing problems. One is behaviour, with the pup continuously acting fearfully towards me (male) though not my wife. The second is a genetic class two malocclusion of the jaw which is likely to cost over $2,000 to treat. I fear we will not be supported by the breeder in paying for this. What are our options? Victorian civil and administrative tribunal (Vcat)?
– Ian from Victoria
Kat George says: Bringing home a new pet is like adding a new family member to your home, so I can imagine along with the legalities (which I’ll get into), this is also an emotional time for you. I’m sorry your experience has been difficult and that your poor little doggo is experiencing fear and health issues.
Every state and territory in Australia has laws and guidelines for breeders, and the RSPCA has a good summary of these. Under Victorian legislation, breeders are required to be registered unless they have less than three breeding female dogs in their care (these are considered microbreeders).
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In addition, all breeders are required to comply with the code of practice for the breeding of animals with heritable defects that cause disease (the code). This sits under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986, which aims to prevent cruelty to animals.
Importantly, the code applies to microbreeders, so it doesn’t matter if the breeder you purchased your puppy from was registered or not, they are still required to comply. The code sets “standards for the prevention and spread of heritable defects and the expression of disease caused by them”.
This may apply to the jaw condition, but not the puppy’s behaviour.
Now, I am not a veterinarian so I cannot say with any authority whether or not the health condition your puppy is experiencing is heritable. A quick Google search suggests this condition can be acquired or inherited (depending on the breed), and that not all genetic illnesses are heritable. The code includes a schedule of recognised heritable diseases, but as I’m not well-versed in veterinary science I can’t determine if your puppy’s condition fits under any of the categories.
What I can tell you is that if your puppy does have a heritable illness within the definition of the code, and that illness was not disclosed by the breeder when you purchased the puppy, you can take steps to report the breeder under the act. You can complain to Agriculture Victoria, the RSPCA or your local council (you can also call 000 but as your situation does not require immediate police intervention you’re better off with one of the former). Agriculture Victoria sets out in detail how to make a complaint to any of these authorities.
In the case that the jaw condition is not heritable, and with regard to the behavioural issues, you may still have recourse under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).
This might start sounding a little clinical, but as with any consumer purchase, the purchase of a pet is covered by the ACL. The law treats pets as consumer “goods” just like any other personal, domestic or household product. That means you are protected by consumer guarantees, which I’ve covered before.
Consumer guarantees exist in addition to any other contracts or warranties provided by a seller. They entitle you to a product that is of acceptable quality (based on what would be reasonably expected of your purchase), fit for purpose and match the description provided by the seller.
The RSPCA says this means “the pet must not suffer from any preventable underlying physical or psychological ailments caused as a direct result of the breeding practice which would inhibit the new owner from interacting with or maintaining the pet in the manner the pet was intended to be interacted with or maintained, taking into account the species, breed and type of pet”.
So when approaching your case from the perspective of “acceptable quality” under the ACL, you may have recourse to remedy. This means that like other consumer goods, you are entitled to a repair, replacement or refund. It sounds as though you are seeking to “repair” your puppy – that is, take the necessary medical steps to cure its illness. And you’re well within your rights to seek the cost of veterinary services from the breeder to cover the cost of this “repair”.
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Unfortunately, I think the behavioural issue might be out of the scope of your entitlement. Most purchasers of puppies would reasonably expect, based on the puppy’s age, that behavioural training is something they would undertake. I can’t confidently say there would be a standard of reasonable expectation for a puppy’s behaviour or temperament – they can vary so widely and given the pet’s young age, it’s unlikely it would be expected the breeder would have trained the pet to any consistent behavioural standard.
As a first step, you should contact the breeder and let them know the diagnosis, provide any evidence such as veterinary reports and quotes or invoices, and outline how you’d like them to remedy the situation. If they don’t help, you can make a complaint to Consumer Affairs Victoria, which will let you know if it can take action on your behalf.
If neither of those avenues are successful, you’re right in suggesting Vcat is the final port of call. Vcat will be able to hear your case and make an order. It’s worth noting that Vcat processes can be onerous, as they take time, money and emotional bandwidth. If you decide to take this route, it could be worth calling the Animal Law Clinic, a not-for-profit that can give you further advice about your matter.
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