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[tx] Can A Dog Rescue Repossess A Dog After Adoption?

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Location: Texas.

Tl;DR: Dog rescue flipped out after we administered veterinary care to a dog we adopted from them and threatened to repossess. Spouse is panicking and thinks we should tell them we've consulted an attorney but I believe they are bluffing and we should wait.

Long version: We are existing dog owners. Spouse saw another dog that had been tagged by a local rescue; the dog was at a city shelter. The rescue was very insistent that the dog needed to be pulled ASAP even though it was a puppy of a desirable breed with no medical issues. We filled out the application, paid the adoption fee, and signed the rescue's contract relinquishing the dog to us. The contract stated that there was a 2 week period in which the dog could be returned to the rescue and the adoption fee refunded if we found the dog to not be a good fit. It also stated that if the rescuer or the adopter felt that the dog was in an abusive environment, the dog could be returned to the rescue.

We took Dog to our vet, where its existing preventatives and vaccines from the shelter were reviewed. Dog was overall healthy but did need tick and flea removal, so the vet recommended a single dose of a medicine specifically meant to target these parasites. When we shared this with the director of the rescue (our point of contact), Director flipped out, claiming that we had "double dosed" Dog and that Dog would have seizures, neurological defects, etc.

I informed Director that we had reviewed all potential side effects and chosen to go with our vet's recommendation. At this point, it had already been almost 48 hours since Dog had been treated, and I told Director we were obviously monitoring Dog for any negative side effects and would take them to the vet were any to arise. Director insisted that I call them (they had already spoken on the phone to my spouse), and I said that we would need to keep conversation to text.

This only made Director angrier, and they essentially had a meltdown over text in which they stated that they did not believe we were married, they believed the dog was being abused because a couple of pictures we sent were in low lighting, that we were going to sell the dog for profit, that this "wasn't working for them," that we should have consulted them before administering the medication to Dog, that their vets would have never given that medication, and that dog vaccines and preventatives are a scam for vets to make more money.

I told Director that if they could not communicate without insulting us, we would not be able to continue the conversation. They continued to insult us, so I ceased speaking to them but did not block in order to maintain a paper trail just in case. They did not contact us after their final message and it has now been almost 24 hours since that last message. My spouse is panicking and believes that they can repossess the dog based on the "if Rescue or adopter feels the dog is in an abusive environment" part of the contract and that we should preemptively let them know we consulted with an attorney. I believe that this is unwise; I think that the Director was just bluffing and wasn't serious about repossession, just upset that they had run into someone who wasn't impressed by their bullying and wouldn't get into a verbal fistfight with them.

So: Can the rescue repossess the dog, and would it be wisest for us to stay silent unless they do attempt to bring legal action?

submitted by /u/Ashamed_Shoulder_903
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