How to deal with this customer regarding chinchilla death

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aznmexaggie

aznmexaggie

Chinchilla Chateau
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
1,668
Location
Northern California
Ok, I would like some advice as to how I should respond to this customer. I already have in my mind what I will do based on my guarantee and policies but I would like to hear opinions and what others would do in this situation.

I sold a chinchilla to a woman 19 days ago on March 10th. 5 days later, she e-mailed me saying she loves him, he is so sweet and cuddles under her chin, and she is very happy to have him. I e-mailed her back thanking her for the update and telling her I'm glad she likes him. He was a very sweet boy and was very friendly and inquisitive with me so I was glad to hear that she appreciated his outgoing personality as well.

Early this morning at 2:00 am, she e-mailed me saying the chinchilla died a few hours ago at 10:00 pm (March 28). She said she thinks he had a brain defect because he always acted funny. Last night he supposedly ran into the wall, broke his neck, and died soon after. I am very sad about this little boy... he was such a sweetie and it is horrible that he died in such a way. She said her friend who worked at a vet said it was due to a genetic problem. She said it is "obviously not [her] fault he died" and it is my responsibility. This is the first I have heard from her that there were any problems with the chinchilla and I certainly did not ever witness any abnormal behavior here (nor would I EVER sell a chinchilla I did not have 100% confidence in his health). I do have a health guarantee for 15 days post-purchase in which the chinchilla can be returned for a replacement chinchilla of equal quality. Or if the chinchilla dies within the 15 days, a necropsy must be done and and a signed statement from a veterinarian must be obtained, stating the cause of death due to an issue or negligence which would have arisen here. It has been 19 days now since she took the chinchilla home but she still wants me to honor my health guarantee. However, she said the body is gone (supposedly she does not know what her husband did with it between 10 pm and 2:00 am?). Does anyone else find the whole situation suspicious? The woman wants me to replace the chinchilla with another male who is the same price as the one she purchased.

Opinions? I do not feel obligated to replace the animal as I was never told he had any issues (nor did he exhibit any signs of illness here), the 15 days have been exceeded, and no necropsy has been done. Should I even sell her another chin if she wants another one?
 
I would copy and paste your replacement policy and email it back to her. She didn't stand up to her end of the deal. I can understand you possibly replacing the animal is she did have a necropsy done and it was shown that there was something wrong with this chinchilla while he was in your care and you just didn't know it. As it stands now though, that isn't even an option. It's like someone going to Walmart and telling them they want to exchange a toaster that doesn't work. When asked for the toaster, they say they threw it away....lo and behold...they get no new toaster.
 
NO!!!

She probably had "an accident" with him and is trying to cover it up. Why wouldn't she have the body available for a necropsy??? If she's so wanting you to honor your 15 day policy, why isn't she holding up HER end of the deal???

Sorry, Sumiko, that just sucks. :hug4:
 
I would not replace the animal. In my policy, I give a 30 day guarantee as far as returning the animal if it doesn't work out or if something comes up and you get a 50% refund, and then I give up to a year as far as deaths go, but I REQUIRE a necropsy and the results must show that there is a genetic defect or that I am somehow at fault before I will replace an animal. If the person says they buried the animal, or give some other excuse, oh well, I have the policy on my sales page and in the agreement that a necropsy must be done, no other way around it. They must adhere to your policy also, before you can do anything about it. It sounds really suspicious to me. I would possibly offer a discount on another animal, but that's about it.
 
from a business standpoint, if it was only 4 days past the normal 15 i would have given her a break IF she followed your policy and provided a necropsy.
since she did not, it sounds way too fishy of a story......how many chins just run into a wall and break their neck? and who gets rid of the body but doesnt know where it is, except maybe tony soprano??
i would not replace the animal and i would not sell her another, even at a discounted rate. not becuase she was careless and clearly doesnt know how to care for a chin, because we all have made mistakes in the past but because she is lying or covering something up and i dont trust her.
 
I would not replace the animal or even give a refund. That sounds super shady. Either the chin is still alive or she dropped him or something else like that happened. You have a sale policy and that should be in place no matter the situation. There's no necropsy report...no new chin. I wouldn't even sell her a new chinchilla. I'd be worried she'd kill that one too or it would "die mysteriously" from something "genetic".

I'm sorry you have to deal with this. :( Your poor little boy...it's never fun to hear a baby you cherished and thought went to a good home ends up like that.
 
Oh what a crock. Since when is running into a wall and breaking your neck a genetic issue? The force with which he had to hit the wall must have been tremendous, making you wonder if he had a little help.

I'm so sorry Sumiko that this happened to your little guy. Aside from the fact that she is outside of your guarantee, the odds are that she caused this herself and is just trying to get a free chin.
 
She is just looking for another free chin. Anyone who can't provide pictures of a dead body of the chin they got from me, and can't back up their claims with a written certificate from the vet, stating what they died from was previously there prior to receiving the chinchilla - I do not replace or refund or nothing.


I know it may sound morbid, and I do feel terrible when I have to request someone dig up their pet and send me pics(I know terrible - but I've been there/done that with people lying about how a chin died just to get a freebie, so I trust no one.), but without proof, there is nothing further anyone is expected to do, regardless of the policy you have.

I had a lady do this kind of thing to me some years ago, except she said the chin got two broken back legs and brain damage, 2 months after she got her from me, and then wanted me to replace. No body or nothing to prove anything. And she knew I didn't sell her the chin like that. No vet(although she claimed she took it to a vet) to support what she was saying, etc...no proof of nothing, just her "word".

Chins don't just get broken back legs or brain damage from doing what they ordinarily do. That takes strength/force(much more than a chinchilla is capable of) and to me sounds like abuse, so why would anyone want to send another pet to the same home that supposedly did that?

Anyhow, I have it in my policy now to provide pics and proof. I am not the only one who has had this happen to them, I know/knew a couple ranchers on the east coast - same thing, so they requested pictures for proof that it was their chin that died, not someone elses the person bought, etc...
 
Whoa! How on earth is that your responsibility? The chin died of blunt head trauma...if you take her at HER word!

Please don't take this as being rude...but there is NO genetic problem that makes chins commit suicide by running into a wall. I am angry at her for trying to pull this CRAP! Do not even sell her a chin...she doesn't deserve anything for this.

The funny thing is that if she didn't start with the garbage about demanding a new chin and the lying about a vet saying it was genetic, you'd probably help her out more! I hate people.

There was this one girl that bought chins from me and a year later BOTH died on the same day AFTER she moved them on a very hot day to a new apartment. Two chins that were aunt and niece and three years apart, mind you. The symptoms she described were dead on for heat stroke. When I told her that she killed her chins she said that a "vet" told her that it wasn't that and couldn't be that. She blamed it on me. I'm NOT God and I can't get chins just so sick that they die a year later...after a year of who knows what food they've been fed and after they were moved in a "truck" on a hot day.

Tell this chick to get lost. If your policy is 15 days, that's your policy and you are perfectly within your rights. She screwed it up by being rude and demanding. You DO NOT HAVE TO DO ANYTHING TO HELP HER! :D
 
To put it cold and blunt. No body. No necropsy. NOT YOUR PROBLEM! Did she sign an agreement when she bought the chin?
 
Those who purchase a chinchilla from me sign a contract and it specifically says:
If my chinchilla becomes ill or dies within fifteen (15) days after pick-up, I am aware that I may take the chinchilla to a licensed veterinarian to obtain a health certificate or statement of cause of death, and in the event that the illness/death was caused by negligence of Chinchilla Chateau or a genetic defect, a chinchilla of equal quality will be provided as replacement.
Click to expand...

Ugh, some people...
 
wow, i think though if i had a chinchilla for less than 15 days, i wouldn't be so mortified to take pictures of the body. Poor little dude tho. *hugs*
 
I am sorry about your chinchilla. I agree it all sounds odd. If she had followed your procedures for a refund and had been 4 days over the warranty, then it would be at your discretion to do her a kindness (a discount on another or a replacement) or not, but since she did not follow procedure, you are not obligated to do anything at all. I would not sell her another chinchilla either. If someone is responsible then they would not try to get another chinchilla from you without having the information that you require for the replacement.
 
I am in agreement and say that No, it is not your responsibility to give her, or even discount a 2nd chin. Your policy is very clear and she signed the agreement. And for loving her chin sooo much I would think she, or her husband would know what happened to the body. Really makes me scratch my head.
 
Depends

I think this really depends on how you are reading the person. Recently i had to put down a Chinchilla due to genetic conditions. Now, it's my fault for getting her at a pet store granted but she was just the sweetest thing on the planet and i had to have her.

She was always different/odd and she did in fact run head first into things a lot more than my boy chinchilla. She ended up having fatty liver disease, and the vet told me it was purely genetic. She lived with and ate the same exact food as my current chin and they are very well taken care of so it made sense.

Now this was me. I spent over 1200.00 trying to save this chinchilla. I had vet bills coming out of my ears. She lived for 5 months and never grew! She had 19% red blood cell count that was non regenerating. In the end it was just better to put her down...

Now, i have tons of evidence, and i could go after the pet store but it would be fruitless. Point is I have proof of everything that happened and she has nothing. So no i wouldn't give her another animal to kill or a refund.
 
I agree with pretty much everything else said, and feel sorry for the chin if any ill did befall it...
 
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