California Pet Breeder Warranty Law: Coverage, Remedies, Penalties

Under California’s pet breeder warranty law, the Polanco-Lockyer Pet Breeder Warranty Act, you can demand a full refund, an exchange for another dog, or reimbursement of your veterinary bills if a dog you bought from a breeder becomes ill within 15 days of purchase or is diagnosed with a hereditary or congenital condition within one year.¹ You choose the remedy, not the breeder. The rights cannot be waived by any contract you signed at the time of sale.

Which Sales the Law Covers

The act applies to a breeder who, during the previous 12 months, sold, transferred, or gave away all or part of three or more litters, or 20 or more dogs, bred and raised on the seller’s own premises.² A neighbor with one accidental litter is not covered. Neither is a middleman who resells puppies bred elsewhere, though separate pet dealer rules may apply to them.

Publicly operated shelters, humane societies, and private rescue organizations are exempt.³ Pet stores fall under a different article of the Health and Safety Code, and since January 2019 California pet stores can only sell dogs, cats, and rabbits sourced from shelters or rescues. The Polanco-Lockyer warranty is for the situation where you are buying directly from a commercial breeder.

What Health Problems Trigger the Warranty

Two categories of health problems bring the warranty into play, each with its own deadline:¹

An illness or infectious disease. A California-licensed veterinarian must certify in writing that within 15 days of your taking possession, the dog became ill from a condition that existed at or before delivery.
A hereditary or congenital defect. A vet must certify within one year of your taking possession that the dog has a genetic condition that harms its health, requires hospitalization, or requires (or is likely to require) surgery.

Injuries, accidents, and problems caused by neglect after you took the dog home are not covered. Illnesses a post-sale vaccination could have prevented are not covered either. The warranty targets problems the dog left the breeder with, not problems that developed under your care.

Your Three Remedy Options

Once a covered condition is confirmed, you pick one of three remedies:¹

Return the dog for a full refund of the purchase price plus sales tax, and get your reasonable vet fees reimbursed for diagnosing and treating the condition, capped at the purchase price plus sales tax.
Return the dog and exchange it for a replacement of equal value, if one is available, with vet-fee reimbursement under the same cap.
Keep the dog and get your reasonable vet fees reimbursed up to 150 percent of the original purchase price, plus sales tax.

The keep-and-reimburse route is the one most people take once they have bonded with the animal, and the higher 150 percent cap reflects the reality that treating a genetic condition often costs more than a one-time diagnosis. Only expenses directly tied to diagnosing or treating the covered condition qualify. Routine grooming, boarding, and wellness exams do not. Save every receipt.

If the Dog Dies

If your dog dies from a covered condition, you are entitled to a refund of the purchase price plus sales tax, or a replacement of equal value, along with reimbursement of reasonable vet fees capped at the purchase price plus sales tax.¹ The qualifying causes mirror the living-dog warranty: a vet must state in writing either that the dog died from an illness present within 15 days of your taking possession, or from a hereditary or congenital condition diagnosed within one year.

You do not have to return the deceased dog. A written statement from a licensed vet explaining the cause of death is enough.³ If a necropsy was performed, include the results, because the statute requires the vet’s report to contain the “precise findings of the examination or necropsy, including laboratory results.”⁴

How to File a Claim

Move fast. You must notify the breeder within five days of the vet’s diagnosis, and give them the vet’s name and phone number.³ The clock starts on the diagnosis date, not the date symptoms appeared. Then, within five days of receiving the written vet statement, you must return the dog to the breeder along with a copy of that statement. If the dog has died, the statement alone is enough.

Send everything by certified mail with a return receipt, or hand-deliver it and get a signature. Most claims fall apart because the buyer waited too long to notify the breeder or sat on the written statement for weeks. The statute does not give you slack on these deadlines.

What the Vet Statement Must Include

The vet’s statement is a formal document with required contents:⁴

Your name and address
The date or dates the dog was examined
The dog’s breed and age, if known
A confirmation that the vet examined the dog
A statement that the dog has or had a disease, illness, or hereditary or congenital condition that makes it unfit for purchase or caused its death
The precise findings of the examination or necropsy, including lab results

If you are asking for vet-fee reimbursement, attach an itemized bill covering only the diagnosis and treatment of the covered condition.⁴ Tell your vet about this law before the appointment so they know exactly what to document. A vague statement gives the breeder grounds to reject the claim.

How Long the Breeder Has to Pay

Once the breeder receives the vet statement (and the dog, if applicable), they have 10 business days to pay the refund or reimbursement, assuming they do not contest the claim.⁴ Weekends and holidays do not count.

When the Breeder Disputes the Claim

A breeder who disagrees with your vet’s diagnosis can require you to bring the dog in for an examination by a different licensed vet of the breeder’s choosing, at the breeder’s expense.⁵ The only exception is when the dog has died. If the two vets disagree, either side can go to court. The 10-business-day payment window restarts from the date of the second exam or the date the breeder received your vet statement, whichever is later.

Both parties can agree in writing to binding arbitration instead, but neither side can force it. For most disputes, California small claims court works well: the limit for individuals is $12,500, which covers the purchase price of virtually any dog plus vet reimbursement. If one side acted in bad faith in pursuing or denying the claim, the other can recover reasonable attorney’s fees.⁵

The Paperwork the Breeder Owed You at Sale

Before you left with the dog, the breeder was required to give you two signed documents. The first is a written health and background disclosure covering the breeder’s identity, the dog’s date of birth, breed, sex, color, medical history, and a signed statement that the dog has no known illness or hereditary condition.⁶ If any health problem is disclosed, the disclosure must include a vet’s written authorization confirming the condition does not require hospitalization or surgery and is not likely to. A disclosure that lists health problems without an accompanying vet authorization is a red flag that the sale should not be happening.

The second document is a written notice of your warranty rights, in at least 10-point type, that summarizes the remedies, timelines, and claims process under this law.⁷ You sign a copy acknowledging you reviewed it. If the breeder never gave you this notice, that failure is itself a violation of the law and evidence for any later dispute. Breeders must also keep written health and status records for each dog for at least one year after the sale.⁸ Those records can be pulled into a dispute.

Waivers in the Sales Contract Are Void

Some breeders slip clauses into their contracts trying to shorten the warranty, limit your remedies, or waive the law entirely. California makes those clauses void and unenforceable.³ It does not matter what you signed. Any buyer’s agreement to waive rights under this law has no legal effect. When a breeder points to a contract clause as a reason to deny your claim, that clause is worthless.

Penalties Breeders Face

A breeder who knowingly sells a dog that is diseased or has a condition requiring hospitalization or surgery faces escalating civil penalties:³

First offense: up to $1,000, a ban from selling dogs for up to 30 days, or both.
Second offense: up to $2,500, a ban for up to 90 days, or both.
Third offense: up to $5,000, a ban for up to six months, or both.
Fourth and later offenses: up to $10,000, a ban for up to one year, or both.

Violations more than five years old do not count toward the escalation. The district attorney or city attorney where the violation occurred can prosecute and seek a court order barring further sales for the applicable period. Other violations of the act, such as failing to provide the required disclosures or refusing to honor the warranty, carry a penalty of up to $1,000 per violation.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122070
2
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122045
3
Justia Law. California Health and Safety Code 122045-122110
4
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122090
5
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122095
6
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122050
7
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122100
8
California Legislative Information. California Code Health and Safety Code HSC 122055