Legal Question in Consumer Law in Virginia
My wife and I are from Pennsylvania. We recently (just a few days ago) purchased a kitten from a breeder in the state of Virginia. The kitten was not cheap. We had been communicating with the breeder via email. All along she had been telling us how healthy and playful the kitten was. When we arrived to pick her up (a 3 1/2 hr drive one way) we learned, for the first time, that the kitten had a respiratory infection and was on Amoxicillin (as stated in a letter she provided from her vet.) The breeder assured us she was on the mend. Perhaps we should not have completed the transaction, but we did and brought the kitten home with us. Later that same evening, the kitten's condition seemed to be getting worse. She was not eating or drinking (or using her litter box, obviously), she was dehydrated, her eyes were weepy and her breathing was weezy - obviously a sick little kitten. So much so we felt it necessary to speak directly to/with the vet ourselves. After discussing the situation further with her, she prescribed a much stronger antibiotic for our kitten (at our expense. The kitten is due to see our vet in 3 days at which time further expense may be incurred relating to this infection.) She further recommended we use an eyedropper to feed her milk, kayo syrup on her gums, anything to get fluids and sugar into her system to increase her strength. This, along with the antibiotic seems to have her on the mend now and she is doing so much better. However, this entire experience has left a bad taste in our mouthes. Although we are wanting to keep the kitten, we feel there should be some sort of financial compensation. We paid alot of money (to us) for what we were assuming would be a healthy kitten (the breeder recently told us via email that she had other kittens that were sick), not one we would have to purchase additional antibiotics for and spend our first night with her feeding her milk through a syringe because she was too weak to feed herself. We do have a contract. The language seems standard. It mentions replacing the kitten if there is a problem following a check-up from our vet. It also mentions the kitten to be free of any fatal genetic defects and replacing him/her should be become deceased within one year. No mention, however, of financial reimbursement. Do we have any recourse? Do we try to get the Virginia State's Attorney General involved/who do we contact? Or should we simply be thankful that the kitten's condition is improving and cut our losses? Thank you in advance for your time and consideration. We look forward to your reply.
2 Answers from Attorneys
While you do not say how much money is at stake or if there is a written contract, you need to see a private attorney about this, if you are serious. I can not fathom the Attorney General is going to do this case for you,.
Consider making a written demand to this cat seller for reimbursement of your expenses incurred in treating this ailing animal or that an appropriate replacement be provided.
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