What to do if Ipurchased a dogwith breeding rights but it is sterile?
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What to do if Ipurchased a dogwith breeding rights but it is sterile?
Bought a dog with breeding rights. After 2 attempts of breeding with no success I had the dog tested and he is sterile. After contacting the breeder, he offered no refund but did offer 2 free stud services. I requested 4 stud services. Now he doesn’t return my calls. Do I have any rights here? I have no signed contract with the breeder. Can I sue this breeder for any damages? I have lost 4 years and 2 litters of puppies.
Asked on November 16, 2011 under General Practice, Ohio
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
First, you cannot sue for the value of possible or potential puppies--that would be considered too speculative (since there's no way to prove how many would have been borne, how healthy, that they would have sold or for how much, etc.). You could potentially recover, in a lawsuit, the value of the dog you bought. To recover it, you'd need to show that either the breeder knew or should have known that the dog was sterile, or that he had given you some sort of warranty or guaranty for the dog (e.g. guaranteed that it would be capable of breeding). If he neither knew the dog was sterile nor guaranteed it, it is unlikely that you could prevail in a lawsuit; in that case, the breeder did nothing wrong, and you took the risk of breeding problems when you bought the dog.
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