Hannah the Pet Theft Society
October 29, 2013
What
Hannah is an Oregon company offering pet adoption and care services to state residents. I first heard of them through their radio ads, where they promote what seems to be their main offering: Total Lifetime Care.
According to the ads, the Total Lifetime Care program promises all the care your pet needs for a modest monthly fee.
“Your monthly Pet Support Fee covers your Hannah Pet’s care from nose to tail, from the everyday to the unexpected.”
Under the program you will have no:
“co-pays, no deductible, no caps, and no tough choices between caring for your pet and the cost of care.”
Hannah also places pets through what they call their Lifetime Matching Program, which, frankly, boils down to a form of “pet rental.” The concerns raised about the adoption service in local press mirror the issues I have with their Total Lifetime Care offering. We did not investigate the adoption side ourselves, so I won’t dwell on it further here.
Backstory
Back in March, my wife and I decided to look into Hannah Society. We had both heard their radio ads and assumed the service would be too expensive. But my wife’s curiosity prompted her to call and ask for more details.
After several calls, their representatives described the program and gave us an estimate for enrolling our three dogs. To our surprise, even with an allergy-prone Labradoodle, the cost seemed reasonable.
They said that monthly fees would vary based on the animal’s breed, size, and medical needs, and that there was a multi-pet discount. We felt encouraged, even the convenience of having dog food delivered seemed worth the price.
Coincidentally, the same Saturday we visited Washington Square Mall, we remembered Hannah had a location there and decided to stop in.
The First Catch(s)
The Placement Center was warm and inviting. Despite our unscheduled visit, we were greeted and eventually sat with a “Pet Consultant” named Natasha.
Natasha was friendly and answered our questions, but she also asked deeply personal ones, including inquiries about our income and our children. When we expressed discomfort, she said the survey was meant to assess a pet’s home environment. To her credit, she stopped pressing after we declined to answer.
She then provided more concrete pricing, and this is when we realized the program wasn’t as all-inclusive as their ads suggested. Grooming, boarding, and baths were excluded. They were offered at a discount, but still as separate, extra costs.
They also told us that monthly fees would not be finalized until each dog was evaluated by a Hannah vet, and that Hannah reserved the right to reject any pet entirely.
A major limitation became clear: enrolled pets may only receive medical care at a Hannah-approved vet. You are not permitted to use outside veterinarians.
We posed a hypothetical: What if our Dachshund needed a $5,000 surgery versus being put down?
Natasha answered that the choice would be ours and that the care would be covered 100 percent.
We scheduled the evaluation but avoided paying the deposit. Something felt off. We wanted to research Hannah before giving them money.
The Catch
After we left, I researched on the internet and quickly discovered a glaring omission. I emailed Natasha for clarification.
It turned out to be true.
Email exchange:
From: Adam
To: Natasha
Subject: Concerns and Questions
My main concern is that I’m reading that entry into the program requires that we sign over ownership of our pets to Hannah Society. Can you email me a copy of the program contract?
From: Natasha
To: Adam
Subject: Concerns and Questions
Unfortunately we do not have a copy of the contract that I can email (it is built into our computer system). Yes, to be a part of our program we do need to have ownership of the pet, but it is on paper alone.
This is when we became furious. In nearly an hour of discussion, Natasha never mentioned that we would legally sign over ownership of our animals.
I sent a blunt reply expressing my disgust.
From: Adam
To: Natasha
Subject: Concerns and Questions
You deceived us. You failed to disclose that we would have to sign over ownership of our pets. You refuse to send the contract and expect us to trust you? “On paper” is exactly what matters legally.
Natasha later added:
We do not go over that information until we go over the contract with you, which is why I did not mention it earlier. We are also not supposed to give out the contract without discussing it in person because people take things the wrong way.
So What
Revisiting our hypothetical: Do you really think Hannah would choose a $5,000 surgery over euthanasia? They say they would, but they own the pet and are a corporation whose primary mission is profit. They were are not upfront with us about key requirements and refused to provide a copy of the contract we’d of been required to sign.
To summarize:
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To enroll, you must sign over legal ownership of your pet.
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Hannah does not disclose this upfront unless asked.
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Employees are instructed not to give the contract in advance.
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As legal owner, Hannah decides all medical care.
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You may only use Hannah vets.
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The program does not cover all advertised needs.
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If you cancel, you must pay a large buyout or surrender your pet.
My advice: stay far away from Hannah Society. For that matter, be cautious about pet health insurance in general. It may not be worth it. Consider a reputable shelter or breeder instead.
Articles about Hannah:
OregonLive: Hannah the Pet Society raises questions…
KPTV: Investigators look into pet leasing company Hannah the Pet Society