Complaint Review: Juanita Hudnall of Chastelle Persians

Proceed with Caution:

After the death of my beloved locally purchased Persian, I began to search for a breeder of quality to welcome another Persian to our family.  Eventually I found Chastelle Persians, and began research.  I liked the fact that another breeder was using a stunning male from her in their breeding program as well as the fact that she exhibited her cats.  Which led me to believe that she looked to better the breed, and raised cats to conform to the breed standard.   Next I called CFA to make sure that she was a cattery of quality, they didn’t know anything of her cattery, but there weren’t any allegations against her at that time. 

So I began exchanging emails with Juanita Hudnall.  She always responded to my questions right away, which was really important to me.  I had expected her to ask questions about the kind of home I would provide for her kitten and was quite shocked when she didn’t, and I should have been concerned when she began pushing for me to put a deposit down, but based on my research, I assumed her intentions were good and moved forward.  I fell in love with a little female kitten that was only 5 weeks old at the time and decided to put 30% down of $700, which is what she required for a deposit.

That was nearly a year ago, May 5^th, 2012, to be exact.   After Juanita Hudnall received the deposit I began hearing from her significantly less, despite the fact that I was sending her regular inquiries on my little girl.  By the time she was 10 weeks old she informed me that she was weaning slower than the others in the litter and that she would have to stay longer. 

And then I got the devastating news, she claimed that the vet confirmed my little girl had a heart murmur and that she wouldn’t be able to sell her.  However she offered me her brother who was still available or she would refund my deposit.  I was clear from the very beginning of our comunication that I was only interested in a female, and therefore declined her offer.

However I currently own a Shih Tzu with a minor heart murmur, and although my veterinarian said it will ultimately shorten her life, she is now 7 years old and still very healthy and has never had to take any medications regarding her illness.  Juanita never offered the severity of the kittens condition nor did she provide me with any information on where my little went.  Due to the lack of proof she provided, I can only assume she was being honest about her condition and didn't just decide to place her in a breeding program who offered her more money.

Because she had offered to send my deposit back I still only assumed her intentions were good, and opted to be put on her waiting list to continue waiting for a female.  Contact basically ceased after that point, and I watched several kittens move from her page.  I began to regret not accepting her offer of the refunded deposit, and then 3 months later, she sent me pictures of a female she decided to place who was 6 months old, who never made it on her website.  In my opinion the quality wasn’t the same, as this female was doll faced, and once again I opted to wait.  I watched as several more absolutely adorable kittens moved from her page, with absolutely no attempt at making good of her offer on either of them.

After that I didn’t hear from her.  I sent her a message in November letting her know that my email address had changed, and I received nothing in response.  By March of 2012 I had enough and sent her a message letting her know that I was done waiting for a kitten and would like to be refunded my deposit.  She messaged me back that although it was against her contract, in which I never signed, she would be more than happy to refund my money back.  She then proceeded to explain that she thought I was waiting for a specific color, however the female I paid the deposit on was expected to be all white and second female, and only other option she provided me with, was a cream bi color. Which was why she had failed at not contacting me through out that year.  This didn’t make any since to me, but I chose not to address it, in hopes of obtaining my deposit.

Two weeks went by and I still hadn’t received anything so I sent her another message in which she responded that I could expect it the next week.  It never came, so I emailed her yet again,  she responded that there were two unexpected deaths in her family, and expressed concern about her husband but that she would send the deposit the very next day.  I offered condolences, and thanked her.  Meanwhile she sold several cats during this "time" in which she couldn't even drop an envelope in the mail box or respond to any of my email inquires in which i sent several.  Nearly another month went by and later the deposit never came nor did any emails.  I sent her another and asked her to set a date in which I can expect the deposit, she never responded.  So I sent several more “reminders” and still she refused to respond.

By this point I realized that the money would never be returned and that she had stolen from my family and committed an act of fraud.  My sister was well aware of the situation and suggested we email her with her name and feigned interest in yet another female kitten, who was absolutely adorable, that she had available on her site.  Low and behold she responded within a couple of hours.  I then responded by introducing myself once again, and then asked for veterinary proof of my kitten having a murmur, etc.

She had been caught, but surprisingly she replied, and she claimed yet again that she would refund my deposit, only after claiming that I had threatened her and that wasn’t the reason she was refunding it, and insisted that she was an honest person.

That was 5/9/2013 and today is 5/22/2013, I’ve have since consulted with a lawyer and am working on filing a case against her.

I have attached all of our emails from November 2012 to current.  So you can form your own opinion.

Brianne Brown:     November 12, 2013

Hi Juanita,

Just sending you my new email.  Unfortuanately I was one of the lucky ones involved in the @hotmail.com hack.  My old email was xxxxxxx_xxxxxxxx@hotmail.com, and this is my new one.  Hope all is well and Happy holidays.

Sincerely,

Bria

Brianne Brown:     February 11, 2013

Juanita Hudnall,

It's Brianne Brown, I sent u a deposit on a kitten who ended up having a heart murmer.  You asked to refund me my deposit and I told you I would rather be put on a waiting list.  You offered me a female since then and I politely declined, rather waiting for something else to come available. Well it's been several months since then I have yet to here from you.  So i have decided i would rather have my deposit back then continue to wait for a kitten.  My phone number is xxx xxx xxxx, if you would rather communicate via phone rather then email.  I still have the stub to the money order as well as the emails and dates when said events occurred, if you have any questions.

Thank you,

Brianne Brown

Juanita Hudnall:  February 12, 2013

Brianne,

It is good to hear from you again.  I am totally aware that you sent me the deposit but my last litters were just made of up of mostly boys and I thought you wanted to wait on a white female.  I did last week have two litters of bicolors born and are mostly females so there is a possibility of a kitten there for you if you want a bicolor.  I also have a solid litter due today but this will be blacks, reds or tortis but we would have to wait and see what females she has. Whatever you decide if fine with me but I am sure we can come up with a kitten for you.  I will wait to hear back from you.

Juanita

Brianne  Brown:    February 15, 2013

Thanks for replying so fast.  I appreciate your offer but I think that i would rather just have my deposit refunded.  I have a paypal account or you can mail it, whatever works for you.  Thanks for your time.

Brianne Brown

Brianne Brown:     February 20, 2013

Juanita,

Please let me know what method works best for you and when i can expect it.  Thank you.

Brianne

Brianne Brown:     February 22, 2013

Juanita,

Thank you,  I appreciate all of your time.

Sincerely,

Brianne

Juanita Hudnall:    February 22, 2013

Hello,

I will mail this out to you on the first of March in the form of a money order. Our contract states that we do no cash refunds but since your kitten did not work out for you, I will gladly return your deposit to you.

Juanita

Brianne Brown:     March 12, 2013

Juanita,

I still haven't recieved the money order, I'm just checking to see when you sent it and when I can expect it.  Thanks for your time.

Brianne

Juanita Hudnall:    March 12, 2013

Brianne,

I am so sorry that I forgot to get this out to you but I promise it will be in the mail this week.  I will mail it by priority mail so it arrives to you safely.  We have just had a very sudden death in our family.  My husbands sister passed away 4 months ago and now this week her youngest son suddenly died and we have no idea what killed him.  They are doing an autopsy now to find the cause.  I am not making an excuse just apologizing for being late and explaining.

You will receive it this week.  Thank you for your patience.

Juanita

Brianne Brown:     March  13, 2013

Juanita,

I'm so sorry to be bothering you and adding additional stress during this time, and my heart goes out to you and your family during this very difficult time.  Whatever works best for you is fine with me, I will be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.

Thank you,

Brianne

Juanita Hudnall:     March 13, 2013

Thank you for understanding.  It is such a very sad time here.  He was only 49 years old.  My husband has had two open heart sugeries and is 100 percent dependent on his pace make and I am just so very worried about getting him thru this funeral but we will endure, right? 

Thanks.

 Juanita

Brianne Brown:      March 15, 2013

I cant even imagine how difficult this is for you and your family.  I wish the best for you, your husband, and all of your family.  Times like these are just so difficult, especially when everyone is still recovering from the former tragedy.  It is going to be so hard for your husband but I hope he manages to stay calm and this will bring everyone together, in the end, even though the circumstance is tragic.  I will keep you in my prayers, words can't express how sorry I am for all of you.

Sincerely,

Brianne

Brianne Brown:      April 11, 2013

Hi Juanita,

I still haven't recieved anything yet and just touching base.  Wanted to set a date so i know when to expect it.  Once again my address xxxx xxxx xxxx

My phone number is xxx xxx xxxx.  Thank you.

Brianne Brown:       April 17, 2013

Juanita,

I have yet to hear from you so again just touching base.  I would like to know when you plan on sending the deposit.  Hope things are better for you and your family, thank you.

Brianne

Brianne Brown:       April 22, 2013

Juanita,

I have sent several messages trying to touch base with you, since it has been nearly 2 months since the last time we spoke.  I'm sure you can understand my conern since you claimed to have sent the deposit back and mentioned that i would receive it shortly, so naturally since it still isn't here I can only assume that it didn't take place since you have chosen not to respond to any of my inquires.  If you get a chance I would appreciate it if you could let me know the current situation.  If for some reason you do not have access to the internet during this time I will start calling you next week to ensure that we are on the same page.

Thanks,

Bria

Anonymous:        May 8, 2013

I wanted to know if your tabby bi color is still available?

Juanita Hudnall:        May 8, 2013

I am sorry but she is sold.  I have a bicolor due next week.  If you like, I can let you know what we have available.  Thank you for your interest.

Anonymous:       May 9, 2013

Juanita,

Amber is my sister, you have given me no other option but to communicate via her email as you will not respond to mine, you are now talking to Brianne Brown.  I had a feeling your stories were fraud and now I know.  If you would have just been honest with me and responded I would have given you as much time as you needed, however i will not tolerate being ignored or lied to, which I now know has been the case all along.

 I am informing you that I will be reporting my experience with your buisness so others will not be scammed as you have done so to me and my family.  I also need documents from your vet proving that said kitten actually had a heart murmer at all, as I now do not believe that was ever the case. I am sure you are aware but I will be pursuing this.

 Brianne

Juanita Hudnall:     May 9, 2013

Hello,

I certainly am not a scammer and I am not a lier.  You will get your money and yes your kitten did in fact have a heart murmer.  I really do not understand what you are talking about because I had told you that I had kittens and you did not want any of them.  As far as the brown tabby and white, yes she is in the process of being sold and is to be  shipped international.  I do not know why you think I am a lier and a scammer just because I have note yet sent you your deposit back even though our contract clearly states no cash refunds but I did tell you I would return it and I will but not because of your ugly threats or harsh words to me.  confirm your address.  I certainly do not understand your using a fake email address either but what ever.  Just confirm your address.

Juanita

Brianne Brown:     May 9, 2013

I confirmed my address with you weeks ago, and my words were anything but "harsh", especially since you have refused to respond to my emails.  You haven't sent my deposit back, money I sent you over a year ago.  As I mentioned, it has been a year, I do not have a cat from you nor my deposit, I think that fraud is a logical concern at this point.  Furthermore, I never signed a contract. 

Never have I threatened you and I never intended for you to take it as such.  However, as of now I am waiting to hear back from my lawyer.  Based on previous experience, I intend to proceed, and if I happen to receive my deposit before he gets to my case I will drop allegations. 

I certainly do not conduct business in this manner, which is why I am shocked that you do not see the wrong in your buisness doings.  As I said, if you would have been honest with me all along and responded to my concerns, I would have gladly given you as much time as you needed to pay.