Penny's Persians review: Kitten sold with ringworm 1

I am posting this complaint to caution anyone who is considering buying a kitten from Penny's Persians (http://www.pennyspersians.com) of Atkinson, North Carolina, owned and operated by Thomas Gay and Penny Shaffer (the breeders).

In April 2013, I successfully sued Mr. Gay and Ms. Shaffer in North Carolina Small Claims Court for breach of contract. The court's judgment can be viewed here:

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9VM_yneGCH3eGgzRHJwQjFLdE0/edit

What follows is a brief summary of the allegations made in court.

In October 2012, I purchased a Persian kitten from these breeders. They advertised and sold a kitten to me with the knowledge that it had an active case of ringworm. After bringing the kitten back to my home in Baltimore, I caught ringworm, as did my dog. As a result, I spent several thousand dollars over the next five months trying to eradicate the fungus from myself, my animals, and my home.

In November 2012, as I struggled with the ringworm outbreak in my home, I discovered that a North Carolina vet used by the breeders had diagnosed my kitten with ringworm more than two weeks before I contacted the breeders about buying a kitten. The breeders were fully aware of the diagnosis, yet they did not share it with me when I contacted them. The breeders made an appointment with their vet five days before I took delivery of the kitten to get the health certificate required to sell the kitten. Their vet declined to issue the certificate without clearing the kitten of ringworm. Three days later, they obtained a health certificate from a different vet, who noted on the certificate that the kitten had ringworm. None of this information was shared with me prior to my placing a $400 deposit and driving from Baltimore to North Carolina to take delivery of the kitten.

One week after I took delivery of my kitten, my brother placed a $300 deposit to reserve another kitten from the same litter. Prior to taking delivery in November, he learned (at the same time that I did), that his reserved kitten had also been diagnosed with ringworm at the same time and by the same vet as my kitten. Upon learning this, he canceled his order for the kitten and requested that his deposit be returned. The breeders refused to return his deposit, noting that their website states that all deposits are non-refundable.

In April 2013, my brother and I sued the breeders, Thomas Gay and Penny Shaffer, in North Carolina Small Claims Court for breach of contract. By not disclosing the fact that the kittens had ringworm in a timely or truthful manner, they failed to honor the terms of the sales contract that both parties had signed. The court ruled in our favor on April 10, 2013, awarding damages of $4, 205.

The breeders had 10 days to appeal or pay the judgment. As of this posting on May 9, 2013, they have done neither.

Needless to say, my experience with these breeders has been terrible. They did not deal honestly with me or my brother. They have refused to accept any responsibility for their actions, and they have thus far ignored the court's ruling against them.

If you are considering one of their kittens, I would urge you to proceed with extreme caution.

Note: At the time of my transaction with these breeders, they operated under the name KokaKola Persian Kittens. This complaint does not pertain to the KokaKola Persian Kittens located in Ocala, FL.

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