Our daycare provider recently took in some dogs which we were unaware of. Funny thing is we learned about it first from our child and was not informed by the provider until later in the week. When we first sign our daycare contract it was a pet free daycare and now that the daycare has pets, we will be taking our child out ASAP... This a breach of contract between both parties. In our contract it states we're responsible for putting in our two weeks notice but because of this we are leaving ASAP, do we still have to put in a two weeks notice and are we responsible for paying for the two weeks? In my opinion I don't believe we are but I'd like to know what others think.

We also put in a deposit for our newborn who is also no longer going to be attending this daycare, are we still able to get this back? We did not sign any contract for our newborn yet and nowhere in any form or writing did it state that there was a deposit for a reservation - it was a verbal agreement.

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I think your rights and responsibilities, as well as the providers are dependent on what state you are in.

Otherwise, I would abide by your contract.

It doesn't make any difference as parents are free to make whatever choices about their child that they wish but does your child have allergies to dogs or a fear or are you just not comfortable with dogs being present in the provider's home?

Does your provider KNOW you are unhappy about the dogs?

Has your child attended SINCE you found out?

I would think deposits would be non-refundable but if you never signed anything and nothing specific was said, I am thinking you and the provider are now going to have to work something out that you can both live with.

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Perhaps you can apply the deposit for your newborn towards the 2 weeks notice? Not sure what the price difference is, but I would rather NOT be part of breeching the contract. She can sue you for the balance regardless of why, and then you'd have to sue her for the deposit and try to prove your case.

I don't blame you for pulling though, I'm not a fan of dogs and if someone claimed to be pet-free but then got a dog and didn't tell me I would be irritated as well.

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We're not comfortable with the dogs especially since they're pitbulls - not saying pitbulls are bad. The thing that upsets me the most is that the daycare provider hid this information until the end of the week & yes my child has attended child care since I've found out.

I like the idea of using the deposit as the two weeks notice payment.

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If your contract specifically states that it is a pet-free home and the provider has brought in a pet then I can see this being a breach on contract on the providers part and she then cancelled the contract. If this is the case and you were also under the impression that there would be no pets when your infant started then I don't see how she could keep the deposit since the terms have changed.

If the contract doesn't mention the daycare being pet-free then there's no breach.

Just out of curiosity, have you talked to your provider yet about not being comfortable with dogs in the home now, or pets in general? I'm just asking because sometimes communicating your problems can really help. I know you stated that she did not mention that she was going to get any pets and that was a gamble she chose to take but if you mention your issue with it immediately then she might rethink her decision to have them or at least her decision to make this change without notifying families first.

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Yes, I did mention to the provider that my husband was more than uncomfortable with the idea - more than myself. I have allowed her more than one week for them to figure something out to do with the dogs. Unfortunately she never updated us on how things were going, leading us to come to the solution of ending the contract.

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My question is this:::

Does the part that says pet free reside in her general daycare information or is it in the contract.

If it's not part of your contract, I don't think it's a CONTRACT breach.

No it isn't right that she chose to get a dog without notifying parents since you were under the impression whether verbal or otherwise that the daycare was pet free.

For instance, in my general daycare info I hand out and talk about at interviews, I specifically state all animals I own, even if they aren't in a daycare area. I also offer parents a copy of their health information including vaccination history etc. however, my decision to get a new pet isn't any of their business unless it affects the daycare aspect. For instance, I got a new small bird a few weeks ago. It lives in my room but the daycare kids can see and occasionally visit him under supervision. I didn't ASK parents. I TOLD them after I purchased him.

However, I don't advertise as a pet free facility.

In my opinion though, to answer your question, a contract breach only occurs if something in the actual CONTRACT is violated.

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Unfortunately, going through my papers it's not stated in the contract but was in the information

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My contracts specifically states that ALL information in my handbook/policies is what the parent IS agreeing to so I don't agree that it HAS to be in the contract to be a valid agreement.

If you don't mind sharing, what "exact" wording does your contract use?

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With that information then, I would say you need to do a two week notice and pay for it.

As far as the baby deposit goes, it depends. It can't hurt to ask if she will apply it. In my program, deposits are NOT REFUNDABLE. Because it holds a spot that can't be filled with another child.

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With a few edits ...


This contract is entered into by and between "Parent" and "Provider" for the purpose of securing Arrangements for the care of"Child".

The Parent and Provider agree:
1. The Parent shall pay the rate child care services for the Child, if the Child is in attendance or not;
2. To make payments on each and every_
3. That the Parent shall pay any additional fees for field trips or special events and diapers, wipes.
4. That Holidays are
5. for a two week Provider vacation and five personal/professional/or sick days per year;
6. Hours and days of care for the Child shall be
7. That care shall not be provided if either the Child or the Provider has a contagious illness as set forth in the written illness policy;
8. alternative care for vacation/personal/ professional or Provider sick days;
9. That the Provider may take additional unpaid vacation or sick days;
10. That the Parent will pay a late fee
11. That this contract may be terminated by either the Parent or the Provider by giving a written notice two week in advance to the last day of care. Payment for the notice period is due whether or not the child attends. The Provider may terminate this contract without giving advance notice if the Parent does not make payments when due. Provider may terminate contract immediately if Child’s behavior is extreme or dangerous to the other children. Failure of the Provider to enforce one or more terms of the contract does not waive the right of the Provider to enforce any other terms of the contract.

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I have like an informational section and a policy section. The informational section is just general stuff and parents don't sign any of that. Then my policy section they sign several places there. Then there's my contract.

But I see what you are saying though. Makes complete sense.

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What was the outcome of this?

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Daycare provider agreed that when we first met the concerns of dogs and pets were already voiced and so knowing this we agreed to meet in the middle and let them keep the deposit fee of the newborn and not have to fulfill our two weeks notice.

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So glad you worked it out without it getting ugly!

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But, here we have to have sooo much informational stuff in our policies! Like activities and our discipline philosophy. So, if I said we read daily, and then for some reason, we had a day where we just didn't get to a story, then I would be breaching the contract, and a parent could claim that it's invalid. Same with rotating toys frequently. My discipline policy says I will use positive guidance techniques, which I primarily do. But, if I told my 2yo dcb to get off the sofa, because it was the 15th time today I had to say "sofas are for sitting on", would I be breaching my contract?

In my contract, I have parents sign separately that they have received a copy of my policies, but it doesn't say that they agree to them. I don't even care if they agree to them, honestly. If they don't, then I'd straighten them out or send them packing. Yeah, I'm so tough!

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That's great that you two were able to work it out! I understand where you are coming from for not wanting animals around your children. But as a provider I also understand that it is the providers home and we can't involve our daycare families in every decision we make.

My mistake when I first started was worrying about every decision and making everyone else happy and not myself. When we moved, I actually moved somewhere that I didn't want to live to keep my daycare families happy. It's been 4 years, I hate where we live and those families have grown up and gone to school...

But I do still agree she should have said something before

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.....hence the HUGE handbooks some of us have

I think it's all in the wording. You have to be "creative" . For ex: "Books are generally read everyday depending on time available and planned activities."

See? Just be clear and vague at the same time.

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We are required by licensing to inform parents of any pets in the house. It is in writing and they sign it.

I think that is totally fair. I wouldn't enroll a child of mine in a daycare that had a pet. I think it was wrong of her not to inform parents.

Laurel

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I have a dog, no where in my contract or policies and procedures does it mention that I have one or that I don't. I inform the parents of it right away tho. The dog is part of my family and if that's a deal breaker oh well. Its like putting in the info that I might get prego or not later down the road and asking if the parents agree to that or not!?? I understand that ppl can be uncomfortable with animals but honestly just talk to the provider about it! Communication goes a long way. Happy it worked out tho

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