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  Discussion on Trainer liability
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Posted on Tuesday, Mar 7, 2000 - 12:23 am:

I took my healthy mare to a training facility where she contracted strangles. The trainer knew that his barn was infected with this disease when I took my mare to him, but he said nothing about it. After she had been there about ten days she contracted the disease and has been very ill with it and we are not sure that she will recover. Since she only recieved 10 days of training and we did pay for 30 are we intitled to a refund? Also, is the trainer liable for the vet bills?
Thank you,
Karla

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 7, 2000 - 5:18 pm:

I am sorry about your experience.

Strangles (streptococcus equi) is a common "infection" in most horse barns; in the sense that most barns have had a case within the last few years. Strangles is rarely fatal or permenantly debilitating. Strangles can incubate without symptoms for longer than 10 days in some cases.

Moving a horse into a new environment and starting training stress can weaken the immune system allowing for such opportunistic infections.

You do not indicate what your training sessions cost and how much you paid for the 30 training sessions. For example, many trainers will charge $30 per training session, but if they don't train, for whatever reason, the horse owner doesn't pay. Is your arrangement like this? Is there any contract involved that I could take a look at?

[Boarding, of course, is another matter and it is customary to pay for boarding per day, regardless of whether of not the horse trains.]

I recommend you and the trainer begin discussions now about how to resolve your concerns.

(a) Vet bills: I am not sure the trainer is responsible for them, but the trainer may entertain such a compromise in this matter;
(b) Training fees: Depending on your arrangement/contract, you may want to resume training the horse as its health improves; in which case, you and the trainer can talk about credit for future training, perhaps making up gratis (no charge) for the first ten sessions, while the horse gets back "up to speed".

I suggest you politely help your trainer develop some customer relation skills in this matter. You should be very polite, and accommodating. Then see how accommodating you can sweet talk the trainer into being.

Again, if there is a contract involved, please let me know about it.
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