Animal Welfare Professionals

Hi, I volunteer for a cat rescue in Ontario Canada. I apologize if this question has been answered somewhere else but I did not find anything in my search.

As a struggling rescue with so many vet bills like many other rescues, I am wondering how others handle the after adoption illnesses and requests for payment of vet bills. We try our best to ensure that each cat going home is healthy and have been checked over by our vets. We explain that when a cat settles into a new home it can be stressful and to watch for signs of URI caused by this and supplement with lysine to boost the immune system.  In our adoption contract, it states that we can not guarantee the health and temperament of the cat but at the time of adoption the cat is healthy.  We also have the adopter initial a clause that says that vet fees after the adoption are the responsibility of the adopter.

With all that said, we get numerous calls and emails asking us to pay for emergency vet bills up to a month after adoption saying the cat has ringworm, won't eat, hasn't used the litter box, etc. We actually had one person demand that we pay and arrange an emergency vet appointment because her cat had not pooped within the 24 hours of adoption. With one of our adoption supervisors pushing this request, an emergency appointment was set up at our expensive. By the time of the appointment, the cat had pooped but the adopter did not advise us and took the cat to the appointment. Luckily in this case, the vet felt so bad for us that he did not charge us because nothing was required.

To the point, I am wondering what type of wording other rescues have in their contracts to indicate once the cat is adopted, it is the owner's responsibility to pay for vet bills. Also I am wondering how other rescues handle requests for them to pay vet bills for their adopters. Obviously if we have a cat that was just adopted an within a day or two becomes ill, we try to look after it with an appointment or medication but this is becoming more and more the case. When should it be the adopter's responsibility. We try to adopt out only healthy cats but lately it seems so many people are asking us to cover their bills.

I appreciate any help or suggestions or contract wording that any of you might have to help us deal with this.

Thanks,
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

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Patti
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Hi Patti,
These situations that you experiencing or observing are common scenario's our Placement teams face pretty frequently and it can be eye opening to the mindset of some owners when it comes to taking on the full responsibility of having a pet.
At the facility I work at it is worded in the adoption contract that if a new adopters pet begins to display common illnesses that can be picked up while in the shelter, they can make an appointment to see our shelter vet, at no cost to them, within 14 days of adoption. We also offer a Free Initial Health Visit to adopters to many local veterinary practices to prompt the owner to start a relationship to ensure consistent care for the pet. If the pet was being treated while in shelter for an illness and is adopted, we do speak with the owner letting them know that we can do to assist but there is a point where the owner will need to take on the financial responsibility. Our full service clinic is low cost and in certain circumstances we maybe able to provide funding to assist with the cost of the treatment, but we do always ask what can the owner provide financially so that the idea that we will cover the cost of their pets care all the time is negated.
We do utilize a 24 hour emergency vet and have had owners go and demand we cover the entire bill, and that's not realistic or sustainable for every adopter or owner. If the reason for the visit is not something pertaining to any treatments or injuries while the pet is in the shelter, we recommend having the pet stabilized and transferred to our full service clinic to assist the owner with the costs. But we do help as much as we can with the costs because we do experience abandoned or surrendered animal situations because the owner couldn't afford treatment which is another aspect our communities pet owners face.
I hope this provided some insight and is helpful to your situation, as this is a more common occurrence than people realize.

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Auriana Brown
Placement Manager
LifeLine Animal Project
Atlanta, GA
404-490-1427

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Justice and
Pet Support Services Specialist
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Original Message:
Sent: 01-31-2022 09:01 AM
From: Patti Altridge
Subject: After adoption pet illnesses and rescue responsibilities

Hi, I volunteer for a cat rescue in Ontario Canada. I apologize if this question has been answered somewhere else but I did not find anything in my search.

As a struggling rescue with so many vet bills like many other rescues, I am wondering how others handle the after adoption illnesses and requests for payment of vet bills. We try our best to ensure that each cat going home is healthy and have been checked over by our vets. We explain that when a cat settles into a new home it can be stressful and to watch for signs of URI caused by this and supplement with lysine to boost the immune system.  In our adoption contract, it states that we can not guarantee the health and temperament of the cat but at the time of adoption the cat is healthy.  We also have the adopter initial a clause that says that vet fees after the adoption are the responsibility of the adopter.

With all that said, we get numerous calls and emails asking us to pay for emergency vet bills up to a month after adoption saying the cat has ringworm, won't eat, hasn't used the litter box, etc. We actually had one person demand that we pay and arrange an emergency vet appointment because her cat had not pooped within the 24 hours of adoption. With one of our adoption supervisors pushing this request, an emergency appointment was set up at our expensive. By the time of the appointment, the cat had pooped but the adopter did not advise us and took the cat to the appointment. Luckily in this case, the vet felt so bad for us that he did not charge us because nothing was required.

To the point, I am wondering what type of wording other rescues have in their contracts to indicate once the cat is adopted, it is the owner's responsibility to pay for vet bills. Also I am wondering how other rescues handle requests for them to pay vet bills for their adopters. Obviously if we have a cat that was just adopted an within a day or two becomes ill, we try to look after it with an appointment or medication but this is becoming more and more the case. When should it be the adopter's responsibility. We try to adopt out only healthy cats but lately it seems so many people are asking us to cover their bills.

I appreciate any help or suggestions or contract wording that any of you might have to help us deal with this.

Thanks,
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

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Patti
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