ComplaintsforWeberhaus German Shepherds

• Initial Complaint

  10/30/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Breeder changed ownership of my dog online without my signature on back of registration. I received an email ownership had been changed. I was unaware of the process.

  Business response

  10/30/2023

  Please see ******* *****/Weberhaus German Shepherd's Response to the BBB Complaint Submitted by ***** *********:
  
  ***** ********* expressed desire originally on 08/20/2021, and then again on 03/09/2023, to return her dog ***** * ********* (called "****") to ******* *****/Weberhaus German Shepherds after owning the dog for 3 years, citing concerns about the dog's behavior and an inability for her to live peacefully with the other dogs in her household. 
  
  
  Per the contract (attached for evidence) that she signed with Weberhaus German Shepherd on 03/10/2020 (the date of the dog's purchase), she agreed to "return the dog at my expense to Weberhaus if I no longer wish to retain it." As ****** breeder, ******* ***** upheld her contractual obligation to take **** back and presume sole care and custody both times tha* ***** requested to return the dog- the first time this occurred (08/20/2021), ***** changed her mind about wanting to retain ownership of the dog after she returned her to ********* care, and ******* graciously offered her the opportunity to take **** back at that time. However, 2 years later (03/09/2023), ***** again made the decision to return **** to Weberhaus- she returned **** to ******* along with her original signed contract and binder of puppy materials provided to her at the time of purchase, as well as material about ****** training and personality to share with ****** new owners at the time in which an appropriate home was found for her. Documentation of the correspondence between ******* and ***** regarding the return of the dog has been attached, however it should be noted that ***** has since "unsent" the messages she originally sent regarding ****** return to Weberhaus. This is clearly evident in the documentation provided, and ********* side of the conversation is still visible. 
  
  
  At the time in which ******* transferred ownership of **** back to herself/Weberhaus after ****** final return, ***** contested this transfer with the ******** ****** **** ****** documentation of this has been attached, as well as the ***** final decision after review of the same materials submitted here to award ******* ***** sole registration and ownership of ****.
  
  
  ******* *****/Weberhaus German Shepherds has upheld the contractual understanding set forth on the day **** was originally purchased by taking **** back into her care on both occasions where ***** made it clear that she no longer wished to retain ownership of the dog. While it is unfortunate that ***** seemingly became regretful of that decision nearly 6 weeks after returning the dog to Weberhaus, it's a decision that was intended to be permanent for the sake of finding **** a more appropriate home, and the decision to return **** to ********* care was one that ***** made willingly on her own accord. 
  
  
  Considering this matter is one that has already been reviewed and decided upon by the ***, we would like for this complaint to be dismissed by the BBB as well. Please let us know if there is any further correspondence or documentation that you would like us to provide, or if there are any additional questions about what has transpired that we can help clarify. 
  
  Sincerely,
  ******* *****
  Weberhaus German Shepherds

  Business response

  12/04/2023

  Because there seems to be some confusion, it is imperative to highlight in this situation that ownership and registration are two different things. Weberhaus German Shepherds acquired ownership of **** after she was voluntarily surrendered to us for the purpose of permanently rehoming. There is no signature required to transfer possession or physical ownership of a dog- that action was made on ***** *********** part per contractual agreement when she returned **** to the custody of Weberhaus German Shepherds on her own accord. ******* complaint about the transfer of ownership is actually in regards to a transfer of registration documents, referring specifically to the dog’s *** registration being transferred out of ******* name and into ******* ******* at the time in which she was surrendered.
  
  In this case, there is no correction to be made on the part of Weberhaus German Shepherds. The *** has already ruled on this matter in favor of ******* *****/Weberhaus German Shepherds based on the same documentation provided here. There was no signature required to transfer ****** *** registration out of ***** *********** name due to the amount of evidence affirming that ***** willingly surrendered **** to the care of Weberhaus German Shepherds for the sake of rehoming her permanently and no longer wished to retain ownership of the dog. There are exceptions to be made on a case by case basis regarding a required signature to transfer registration documents per the ***, and in this case it was deemed warranted by the organization itself.
  
  While we regret the evident difficulty that ***** is clearly having regarding the surrender of her dog, we would once again like to conclude by bringing light to the fact that returning **** was a completely voluntary choice made on her part. All action taken by of Weberhaus German Shepherds has been in accordance to the contractual agreement entered into by both parties at the time of ****** original purchase, and transfer of ****** *** registration documents took place after Weberhaus German Shepherds had attained physical ownership of the dog via the prior owner's voluntary surrender and had received approval to do so by the ***.
  
  Sincerely,
  ******* *****
  Weberhaus German Shepherds

  Customer response

  12/10/2023

   
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response.  No confusion here.   Things are very clear.  Ownership and registration go hand in hand.  
  
  I returned my dog to ******* ***** not knowing the backside of the Certificate of Registration needed my signature.  She transferred it despite needing my signature.  I learned of this process when the *** sent me an email stating the transfer had been finalized.    
  
  The bottom line:  The breeder, ******* ***** transferred the certificate of registration on my dog without my signature.  She refuses to make this error right.  There is no contract that gives a breeder authority to use or bypass my signature.  
  
  It is unethical that the ******** ****** **** also does not own up to its error in transferring the certificate without my signature and validates the breeder, ******* ******* error. 
  
  My complaint is that this does not happen to anyone ever again.  None of this will return my dog to me.  That is not the issue.  
  
  Would I have taken my dog back if ***** had let me?  Yes.  She refused and never made any attempt to make this a win win for both of us.  
  
  There is no need for dog registries if we don’t hold breeders and clubs responsible to follow their own polices and procedures and communicating them to the dog owners.  
  
  As this will only go back and forth, I ask the BBB to be the go between and make the public aware of this error and ask ******* ***** how she will learn from it and do differently the next time.  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** *********

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