Puppy died of Parvo Very complicated Help!

[Jonishere5]

Hello I am from washington state and recently sold a puppy to a family. I got the puppy from a breeder for free from stud service, I dont own a business or anything he just called me when the breeder I bought my puppy from gave him my number. Well I sold them the puppy on Jan 20th. I reminded the couple to get the puppy their vaccines and such the next one was due on Feb 2nd. Well On January 30th the puppy had A deadly disease called Parvo and was in the animal hospital. It died on Febuary 3rd. I looked into the virus and it is very contagious can almost be found anywhere. The incubation period is about 4-10 days on the virus. I had the puppy for 18 days before I sold it to the family so I belive the puppy diddnt contract the virus from our environment becuase it would have got sick. So I believe I shouldnt have to pay them back. They want to sue for vet bills, the cost of the puppy, and maybe lawyer fees! I got a clean bill of health from the vet on Jan 16th saying it was in perfect health besides a couple fleas. I want to know if I am legally responsible to pay them back, also if they do sue me could they get vet bills, lawyer fees, and the cost of the puppy back? I also talked to a couple vets and they said most likely the incubation period of the virus for a puppy would be in most cases be less like 5-7 days. Well need help ASAP thank-you!

He was also in perfect health when sold!
-Jon

 

[Ohiogal]

You very well may be responsible for the vet fees and the cost of the dog.

 

[nikfrz]

Hello I am from washington state and recently sold a puppy to a family. I got the puppy from a breeder for free from stud service, I dont own a business or anything he just called me when the breeder I bought my puppy from gave him my number. Well I sold them the puppy on Jan 20th. I reminded the couple to get the puppy their vaccines and such the next one was due on Feb 2nd. Well On January 30th the puppy had A deadly disease called Parvo and was in the animal hospital. It died on Febuary 3rd. I looked into the virus and it is very contagious can almost be found anywhere. The incubation period is about 4-10 days on the virus. I had the puppy for 18 days before I sold it to the family so I belive the puppy diddnt contract the virus from our environment becuase it would have got sick. So I believe I shouldnt have to pay them back. They want to sue for vet bills, the cost of the puppy, and maybe lawyer fees! I got a clean bill of health from the vet on Jan 16th saying it was in perfect health besides a couple fleas. I want to know if I am legally responsible to pay them back, also if they do sue me could they get vet bills, lawyer fees, and the cost of the puppy back? I also talked to a couple vets and they said most likely the incubation period of the virus for a puppy would be in most cases be less like 5-7 days. Well need help ASAP thank-you!

He was also in perfect health when sold!
-Jon

Looks like your timeline is very slim. What were the conditions of the breeders enviornment? What were the conditions of your enviornment. Are your animals current on shots, and was the puppy allowed outside to play with other neighborhood animals? Do you know what envoirnment the puppy was going to? If the puppy was given a clean bill of health, was a blood panel done? If so, then you are armed.

As previous poster stated, they would most like be awared actual damages, not attorney fees.

 

[Jonishere5]

Reply

Well the puppy was in my house for 18 days isolated there we never took it out until we took it to the vet. I just believe since we kept the dog in the house for 18 days and it diddnt have parvo, it must have caught it when it went to the people we sold it to. Also we did not have bloodwork done on the dog. I do not know what environment the puppy went into, but my other dog (its father) has had full shots, and it is also an indoor dog, and can only go out into our fenced backyard, which no other animal has ever been. If the father of my puppy was carrying parvo the puppy would probably have got sick earlier. Which my dog is not becuase it is all up to date on its shots, and only has access to our fenced backyard, and our house. Also the puppy did only have one shot though. Also reiterating the puppy was isolated in our house, and only came in contact with my dog which had no contact with any other animals becuase that dog is also isolated.

 

[CCMominVA]

The ethical thing to do would be to refund them the amount of the puppy. If it were me, I'd pay the vet bills also.

You told the buyers the puppy was due for it's next shot on Feb. 2nd. The pup ended up in the vets on Jan 30th. There's no way of knowing exactly how the puppy contracted parvo. It will save you time and effort if you just do the right thing.

 

[Ozark_Sophist]

My wife got a new puppy early last year. Shortly afterward, we took the puppy to get his shots. At one appointment at the vets office, he was exposed to Parvo, which he contracted five days later. It is expensive and extremely complicated, especially when you have other dogs to avoid spreading the illness. We isolated the animal, and after every contact with the animal, we had to change, shower, etc., especially before working with our other dogs.

Parvo can live in the environment, a dog free environment for over three months. It's possible the puppy was exposed at the vets or even at his new home. New owners like to show off their puppy and he might have been exposed that way.

Unlikely the puppy got it from the breeder, unless the breeder wasn't reputable--it's why breeders don't like visitors because Parvo spreads so easily.

Treating Parvo is very expensive, but I don't think you are responsible--unless you had a contract. Otherwise, the buyers would have to prove you knew the dog was sick.

 

[Jonishere5]

thanks for the replies

Yeah I just belive that if the puppy was at our house for 18 days without getting sick we must not have had parvo in our environment I believe as soon as the puppy went to its new owner it was exposed. I dont think it could have caught it from the vet becuase I took it to the vet on the 16th, and the new owner calls me up and tells me the puppy is in the hospital on the 30th. The incubation period is 7-10 days according to what I have heard. If they called me up 3 days after I sold them the puppy and said it had parvo then I would believe we were responsible, but it was 10 days, and I dont think I am responsible, and am willing to go to court about it. I am 19 and dont know much about the laws, so the maximum I may lose is the vet bills, cost of the dog and lawyer fees, if I lose in court is that right? Also I want to use my dad as a witness that the dog was always inside, and was isolated, and never went anywhere except when we took him to the vet. Could I use my family member as a witness?

 

[Ozark_Sophist]

We treated our puppy on an outpatient basis as inpatient care was much too expensive. The cost still ended up at $300 or so, about a third of inpatient. The difference is survival rate. We caught the illness early before frank symptoms and dehydration, so the vet was able to inject 500cc under his skin daily for three days and provide antibiotics, etc, before he got really sick. My wife still had to wake up every two hours to give the puppy pediolite (sp) and medication.

I looked at the timeline again. Depending on the progression of the illness and any delay the new owner had in taking the animal for treatment, it is possible the puppy was exposed Jan 16th at the vet (7-10 day plus a couple day delay in seeking treatment). There would be no way you could tell on Jan 20th.

Worst case in small claims would be cost of dog, treatment, and court costs. Small claims doesn't incorporate lawyers fees (I could be wrong about this). Your father could work as a witness, but an affidavit of health from the vet who administered the shot on Jan 16th would be better.