Stella’s story

Anna first saw her future puppy when scrolling past an ad on Gumtree for a purebred Cavalier. After getting in contact, she went to the breeder’s house to inspect the premises and meet the soon-to-be newest member of her family, Stella. The breeder assured Anna that the puppy was healthy and, feeling confident after her visit, Anna sent the breeder a deposit. She paid the remaining amount when she went to pick Stella up two days later.

Anna was also provided with a puppy pack containing the breeder’s registration details, DNA test results, microchip number and photos of Stella’s parents.

A week later, Stella began displaying strange symptoms including restlessness, refusal to eat, vomiting and lethargy. Anna sought urgent veterinary treatment and was referred to a specialist. The specialist found that Stella had neurological signs that may have been congenital. Stella had an MRI, which identified a large mass in the middle of her brain, diagnosed as a brainstem abscess.

Anna tried to contact the breeder several times but received no response.

Stella was in and out of vet visits over the following months. Though the brainstem abscess was successfully treated, Stella developed secondary health issues as a result of the intensive treatment.

Anna was determined to investigate further for Stella’s sake, and obtained a genetic analysis of Stella’s breed makeup. She discovered that Stella was not a purebred Cavalier, and that the DNA documents may have been falsified. This was confirmed by the police, who charged the breeder accordingly.

Anna also discovered that the breeder was not registered at the time of sale. As Stella was seriously unwell within days of bringing her home and significant veterinary expenses had been incurred, Anna decided to pursue civil proceedings as well, to affirm her rights as a consumer. With assistance from the Animal Law Institute, Anna filed an application in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal to recover her vet bills. After several engagements with the Tribunal and the breeder, a settlement was eventually reached to reimburse part of the expenses incurred by Anna.

Stella is now healthy and continues living in her loving home with Anna.

Names have been changed for privacy reasons.