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Having been in a severe stressful environment?

Having had medical problems that have since been cured?

Age?  Going from an 8 week old kit to a 4 month old youth?

I would expect to pay full price for a chin that has been through one or all of the above?

I would NOT expect to pay full price for a chin that has been through one or all of the above?

I would purchase/adopt a kit that had been through one or all of these?

I would NOT purchase/adopt a kit that had been through one or all of these?

[ChinchillAZ]

I will apologize in advance for the fact that this reply is a bit all over the place, but I'm really kind of confused about this whole post...

To answer the original question, I would expect that there would be any number of reasons why someone might elect to drop the amount of money they are asking for a chinchilla, whether rehomed or not.  If you're asking what would make ME ask someone to reduce the price of a chinchilla...  I have told sellers that I am unable to pay the amount they are asking and they have asked what I would be willing to pay and we have negotiated that way.  I also would completely understand if someone said to me, "I'm not willing to negotiate on the price."  I respect other breeders and the decisions they make in regards to how much they charge, whether or not I would ask the same amount for the same chinchilla.   

Personally, if I sold chinchillas to someone and they were returned to me, there would be some things I would consider:
1. If I did not pay anything to get the chinchillas back, I would not sell them again for the same price I had originally sold them for.
2. If I paid the price that I valued the chinchillas at at the time of getting them back, I would sell them for that same amount.
3. If I paid exactly the same price that I had sold them for, I would expect that they were still worth that same amount and treat this the same as #2.


Jo Ann:  How long have the chinchillas been in the care of the person they are with now who is claiming that they have coccidia and ringworm?  These are both things they could very easily have gotten at another person's home.
They wrote you a check for $500 and have put a stop payment on it?  And they are also refusing to pay more of what they owed you?  Am I understanding this all correctly?  First of all, you could sue them for breech of contract.  Once they have given you money and taken possession of your property (which is what animals are considered) they would have to return the property at the very least before they had any legal right to stop payment on a check.  That being said, why oh why would you allow anyone to pay you with a check and why oh why would you let anyone take your animals when they still owed you money?  Please, please tell me I'm misunderstanding.   
These people do not have the authority to "dispose of" animals that they do not legally own, which they don't if they have stolen them, which is essentially what you do if you write a check and then cancel it.  IF they have a problem with the chinchillas and IF you won't take them back (which I know isn't the case) then they should follow the law and take you to court, bringing with them the proper documentation to prove that the chinchillas were sold maliciously and in poor health and that you refused to do anything about it.

In regards to a chinchilla who has been under severe stress not accepting a mate or being able to raise kits, this is NEVER something that can be guaranteed, even when you buy/sell a proven breeder!  My breeders are also my pets.  I would not be inclined to return them for this reason.  If none of my chinchillas ever bred again, then they would just be my pets and I would be perfectly happy with that.   

I've read chinchillagrl06's friend's story over on C-n-Q already.  Very sad.  Very tragic.  I'm sorry that she and her chinchillas had to go through all of that.   

[Jo Ann]

    In the beginning, as a courtesy, we met them part of the way to deliver them, set for 4 hours with our van idling while they took their time choosing which chins they wanted, from 12 chins I brought to show them.  This is nothing unusual for us and they were told ahead of time they were not obligated to buy any  ... it was their choice.

That being said, why oh why would you allow anyone to pay you with a check and why oh why would you let anyone take your animals when they still owed you money?  Please, please tell me I'm misunderstanding.   

     Naive stupidity ... a mistake that will not be repeated.  I grew up in a world where your word and honor were the same thing and they were both cherished.  Now, everyone has to sign a contract, even if I give them the chin.

     

How long have the chinchillas been in the care of the person they are with now who is claiming that they have coccidia and ringworm?

     The person that still has them and they have had them for over 2 months.  The very first time they were taken to the vet was a month after they got them, which also happened to be the day after they received a certified letter from me (about the stop payment check and refused to accept it).  I have seen no vet reports that anything was/is wrong with them, this is all "according to this person".

   {Of course they let me know, in no uncertain terms, they were upset because I did not tell them they could buy the same color chins somewhere else, cheaper.  This was the first reason I was given that the stop payment was made, then it turned to "they have coccidia" ... all this a month after they got the chins ... no verification of this from a vet, to date. Then over 6 weeks after having them, they claim ring worm has developed.}

    I know/feel the coccidia and/or ring worm did not come from me, but I played it safe.  None of my animals have it, or it would have showed up by now, nor any that have been adopted.  On chinchillas adopted from me, since that time, I have ask and paid for coccidia tests to be done on each chin ... all were negative, none were positive, I have the paper work/reports from vets proving this.[/i]

They wrote you a check for $500 and have put a stop payment on it?  And they are also refusing to pay more of what they owed you?  Am I understanding this all correctly?  First of all, you could sue them for breech of contract.

Yes, they gave me $400 in cash, wrote a check for $500, then stopped payment on it (a felony in VA), and they have had 2 months to make good the check.
And, yes, they are refusing to pay for the other ones they paid nothing down on and refusing to bring them back to me. (As I have been told, is also a felony.)

    We offered, if this person would make good the check, I would take the chins to my vet, get them checked to make sure they were healthy and uninjured and return what was left of the $900 to this person (with a copy of the vet bill, of course).  With all the lies and threats, at this point I felt it was the only assurance the chins would be returned in good condition.
They refused.

   There were several offers made by us, between the first and last offers, each was refused.

   I offered to drive 5 hours each way to pick up all of the chins at their vets and give them their stop payment bad check back ... all they had to do was pay for a statement from the vet that they are all healthy (if not, provide the meds needed) and that they are not injured.  The $400 would be forfitted to cover rehab/isolation time any additional meds and my vet here and anything else that might be wrong with them.  Any monies left over would be returned to them.  (I was not even going to charge them for the gas up and back or for the motel room to spend the night.  I'm a heart and stroke patient and could not handle the round trip without rest time.  This person also knows this.)
This person refused the offer.

    We ask that the two that were not paid for at all, be returned to us here.  We didn't even ask for them to pay the vet check on these two, just to return them to us here.
They again refused.
   
     Now, it is up to the law as to what will be done.

 
Jo Ann 

[Stacy]

I think it is just crazy that some one would do that.   

[Summer]

Jo Ann I hope evey thing works out for you and the Chins. How could some one do this?

[outbackchin]

JoAnn, I am sorry you have to go through this.  Stories like this one make me sad about what kind of people are out in the world. 
What goes around, comes around and I hope they get everything coming to them!

[ChinchillAZ]

Thank you very much for clarifying everything, Jo Ann.  I am very sorry to hear that you are going through all of this.   
The excuse that you didn't tell them they could have gotten the same color chin somewhere else for less is amazing to me...  I guess it's a seller's responsibility to comparison shop for their customers?  So when they go fill up their car with gas and then see that they could have gotten it for 2 cents less three blocks down the road, they put in a stop payment on their credit card or go back and demand a refund in cash, right?     People can be incredibly ridiculous.
I appreciate what you do as a person, but I am glad that you're changing some of your practices from a business point of view.  My terms of sale very specifically say that I will charge a delivery fee if I have to travel out of town and that this money must be paid before I will even get into my car with a chinchilla.  I also will not hand over a chinchilla without it having already been paid in full via a money order that has cleared in the bank, a payment via PayPal, or cash received at the time of delivery.  I have heard horror stories from Susan of AZChins and I'm just not willing to go through it myself, if I can in any way prevent it.
I hope that everything works out for you and, of course, the chinchillas involved.  If there is anything we can do, let us know.   

[chinclub]

Its a shame we have to learn these lessons the hard way.  I lost about $500 in chinchillas when I first got started by taking a check.  I figured it was a lesson learned and asked for cash from then on, but I made an exception once to someone who was a repeat customer.  Again I lost my money.  So now I have a set cash only policy.  Its so sad that the world has become like this. 

[chinchillagrl06]

People are just terrible sometimes. It makes me sad. 

[ChinchillAZ]

...I made an exception once to someone who was a repeat customer.  Again I lost my money.

A repeat customer did that?     WOW!  You'd think you'd at least have better luck with someone you'd delt with repeatedly.

[chinclub]

I know!  It was very disappointing.

[Jo Ann]

Yes, even a repeat customer will not always honor their promises. When you trust someone because you have worked with them before and they do not, it is just as bad, if not worse ... mainly because they are not a stranger.

     Please take this situation, and others, I am sure you have heard of, and learn from them.  Make a contract and make it to be signed by any and all customers every time, regardless.  Sign regardless of sale, rescue or gift ... people change.  I have only had trouble with 2 out of the hundreds of people I have worked with, I hope your record can be "0".   You, as the breeder, are responsible to see that the chinchillas you raise are the best they can be and their life with you and/or with someone who gets them ... continues to be the best and healthiest it can be.

     I have a simple contract on my site now, at: http://www.luvnchins.com/AdoptionContract.html   You are more than welcome to use it as a rough guide for your own contract AND/OR if you see anything there that should not be or not there that needs to be, please let me know.  We need to help each other in order to properly care for our chinchillas.

     I can not stress enough cash only, or PayPal if you have an account there. 

    Thanks for all your support and comments!  I will net you know how it turns out.

 
Jo Ann 

[hope]

That is a very upleasant situation & I hope it is resolved satisfactorily.

[ChinchillAZ]

Make a contract and make it to be signed by any and all customers every time, regardless.

I have a contract that I have people sign as well.  This is just one of the reasons that I won't sell to anyone under 18.  People under 18 cannot legally enter into a contract.

[Summer]

I too have a contract with all my animals. 

[Debbie.nl.ca]

I grew up in a world where your word and honor were the same thing and they were both cherished.  Now, everyone has to sign a contract, even if I give them the chin.

I hear that, sad isn't it. I take so much pride in that fact that people can trust and depend on me with anything.
Anyone who knows me knows it, and some do take advantage. :-\But I won't change.