A puppy purchasing agreement gone wrong has ended in a B.C. woman receiving over $2,000 in damages for her work caring for a Labradoodle while it delivered nine puppies.
The decision, published by the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal Thursday, revolved around Pippa, a Labradoodle who was meant to undergo three breeding cycles under the guardianship of Kathryn Porter.
Porter claimed she was owed half the purchase price of a puppy ($2,000) for her work. The defendant, David Loewen, argued Porter hadn’t fulfilled the terms of the contract and so wasn’t entitled to a payment.
Porter submitted a contract signed only by her as evidence of the puppy purchasing agreement. That agreement stated Porter would pay Loewen $4,000 for the dog, Pippa. The woman would take care of the Labradoodle through three breeding cycles up until she was five years old, according to the contract cited by tribunal member Alison Wake.
Pippa mated with a male dog several times in May 2022. That summer, Porter delivered a litter of nine puppies to Loewen, read the decision. But soon after, Porter said she couldn’t continue to care for the Labradoodle and returned it to the owner.
The tribunal found that Loewen accepted Porter’s repudiation of the contract, and therefore, was not in breach of the contract for failing to care for the dog through the delivery of another two litters.
Both plaintiff and defendant agreed Porter had not been paid anything for her work taking care of Pippa during her first pregnancy.
In the decision, Wake wrote that the payment to Porter was not conditional upon the dog delivering all three litters.
The tribunal ordered Loewen pay Porter $2,196.46 — the cost of half a Labradoodle puppy, plus interest.
