Two dog owners have filed suit against a Petco in Kaneohe, Hawaii claiming both their dogs had parts of their bodies cut off during grooming. Additionally, not only did the groomer cut off one dog’s ear and the other dog’s tail- they allegedly tried to glue at lease one of the dogs back together without ever mentioning the incident when the dogs were picked up.
Michael Green, one of the dog’s owners stated, “The nails are bleeding because they were cut too short, the dog was filthy and the tip of the dog’s tail was cut off. They didn’t seem, the people at Petco didn’t seem overly concerned about that.” Gladys Kapuwai’s dog actually had a portion of it’s ear cut off and the Petco staff used glue to conceal the injury. According to Hawaii News Now, Kapuwai stated, “Was dried, bloody, was dry blood, everything, I noticed that at home, so when I took her to the vet, the doctor had told me it looked like they tried to glue it back.”
Petco made a statement that they are investigating the case and, “We can’t comment on the specifics at this time, but we can tell you that we have very strong standards and policies in place for the care and treatment of animals in our grooming salon and we provide training on those standards and policies for our grooming associates.”
Some things to consider when choosing a groomer to avoid this type of tragic injury? Do your homework on a potential groomer and grooming shop. Ask about your groomer’s training, find out if your dog will be assigned a specific groomer, and ask what type of procedures they have in place in case of an emergency or accident.
