Can a breeder refuse a refund?

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Originally Posted by JoshSloane

Yes, the breeder is definitely wrong for having incorrectly advertised the animal, as well as for having an underfed and likely malnourished animal that clearly wasn't fit for sale. However, the buyer needed to refuse the sale immediately when she first saw the animal in person. I know that she fell in love with her, but you cant keep the animal and get your money back at the same time.

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This is correct. The buyer had a chance to put eyes and hands on the animal before putting down any cash - if she has misgivings about the snake's condition she should have walked away then. It's very different when you pay for an animal that gets shipped to you and it was misrepresented.

I'm not surprised breeders don't give a guarantee past live arrival. On this site we've seen inexperienced keepers end up with sick or dead animals through ignorance or bad advice. Unregulated heat, too much or too little heat, improper use of insecticides or chemicals in the enclosure, unmonitored live feedings, lack of proper quarantine, etc. - the seller has no control so why should there be a guarantee?

totally agree you should know if a snake is fit or not and there should not be any type of refunds with buying any type of animal but in no way am i sticking up for the breeder as they should never have a reptile up for sale knowing it is unhealthy. that gives other breeders bad names and makes it hard for this industry to survive

Offering a guarantee past live arrival is very risky for any seller considering that once the animal is received you do no longer have control on husbandry. Over the years I have seen people cooking their snake, dropping something on their head, closing tubs and breaking the snake's name etc in just a few days after arrival.

I think a 50% refund is actually very fair most breeders would not issue any refund at all.

As for the size if true right now it's hearsay, it would indicate a poor feeder (which happens) and that falls back on the buyer to A/ Know what they are buying by asking the right questions and B/ Make a smart decision based on the information or lack there of provided by the breeder.



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Originally Posted by bcr229

The buyer had a chance to put eyes and hands on the animal before putting down any cash - if she has misgivings about the snake's condition she should have walked away then. It's very different when you pay for an animal that gets shipped to you and it was misrepresented.

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This right here is the biggest reason I've been so resistant to purchasing a snake I can't go and see in person. When it comes right down to it, even a picture can be misleading because of x, y, or z. That doesn't mean I won't ask questions and request photos prior to making arrangements to see the animal, but I feel much more comfortable about purchases when the option to see the animal in person is available.

Since she saw the snake and decided to buy it/keep it, then she made the decision to purchase it. 5 days is plenty of time for many things to kill a perfectly healthy animal.

If it really was 250g and 2 years old, that's really far off. But your friend would have to show proof that the snake was that size and that it was stated to be that old.

Not handling a ball python is generally not an issue as far as stress. They do quite well without handling, then getting handled, as long as your friend wasn't stressing the snake by handling it excessively right after moving it to a new cage from the breeder. Even then, it shouldn't die from being handled a lot, even if it was never handled prior.

Because your friend decided to buy/keep the snake after seeing it, I'm surprised the breeder offered anything back.

Wow that's not right at all and I recently rescued a year and a half old pastel that was 135 grams I fed it a pinky rat and it died 2 days later and I got blamed by the rescue that it was my fault because they had it for 6 months and it was fine and ate pinky rats

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Originally Posted by dylanjwicklund

Wow that's not right at all and I recently rescued a year and a half old pastel that was 135 grams I fed it a pinky rat and it died 2 days later and I got blamed by the rescue that it was my fault because they had it for 6 months and it was fine and ate pinky rats

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who was the rescue org. sounds like they need to learn something about the animals they are fostering or adopting out.

A local one near Vancouver bc and yea makes me wonder about all their other reptiles

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But I'm pretty sure they called them self the urban reptile society

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Originally Posted by SmoothScales

This right here is the biggest reason I've been so resistant to purchasing a snake I can't go and see in person. When it comes right down to it, even a picture can be misleading because of x, y, or z. That doesn't mean I won't ask questions and request photos prior to making arrangements to see the animal, but I feel much more comfortable about purchases when the option to see the animal in person is available.

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While there definitely are some bad apples out there, I have truly had some great experiences with various breeders around the country. I think it's most important to establish a conversation about the animal before any payments are made, and get all the information that you can. BOI on Faunaclassifieds is a good resource, as well as simply googling the name.

One thing that I highly recommend is to NOT have any animals shipped directly to your home, but rather to a FedEx or UPS facility instead. Once you receive the package, open it IN the store, not at home. This way if you open the box and the animal shipped does not match the description or expectations, you can refuse to accept the shipment, and not take the animal into your possession. This leaves no potential questions as to how the animal was treated or cared for while in your home.