On August 17, we left for a week long vacation on the Outer Banks. We dropped our full-blooded Jack Russell Terrier at "Dirty Dogz" a boarding and grooming facility located in Hampton, Va. On the phone, they seemed very nice and caring. The thing that attracted us to them was the convenience of dropping our dog off and picking her up at anytime on a Sunday, the fact that she was not going to be left in a cage all week and that it was a family owned/operated business was also appealing. We left Maddie there with her doog and treats and were to return to pick her up on the following Sunday, August 24. We did worry about her most of the week because the place was not nearly as nice as we thought it would be when we saw it. On Thursday, August 21, I decided to call and check on her. We were assured that Maddie was "OKAY".
On Sunday, August 24, we returned to pick her up only to find that she was gone. They couldn't provide us with any information as to exactly when she escaped from the property and could not locate the person who was last with her on Saturday night/Sunday morning. They did know that it happened sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning because she was there when the attendant left on Saturday... His name was Jacob Rice. We have two young children who at this point were devaststed and crying.
We asked to speak to the owner, Deborah J. Rice (known as DJ) and were told she was not there. We insisted on speaking with her and she was telephoned by her son, Jacob Rice. She said she had already been in and knew the dog was missing, but she was in a business meeting. We were not allowed to see where our dog was being kept while she was there because it was "UNSAFE". We said "What are we supposed to doe now, just leave?" and he said, "Yes, leave." We called the police and they came and asked a few questions, but said there was nothing they could do. The officer did go in a retrieve our nearly empty food bag.
We realized were were getting nowhere and felt like we needed to be out searching the streets for her since she had only been missing for a few hours. We left to start searching. We didn't feel good about her at this point because this area is mostly industrial/commercial so she would have no where to go. It was also right next to the interstate and Aberdeen Road, so we feared she had gotten run over.
We called family members and we all began searching the entire area. My brother-in-law went back in and questioned the guy working, Jacob Rice about what he thought may have happened and he said his cousin had been there through the night and he may have taken her with him. My brother-in-law questioned him further, asking him if he really thought his cousin would do that and he replied, "I don't know, I hope not. I would hate to see him go to jail again!"
While our family continued to search for Maddie, my husband headed to the Peninsula SPCA and I headed home to see if we may have had a message from someone who may have found Maddie. I did indeed have a message... We received several messages expressing concern for our dog from another boarding facility on Aberdeen Road, Wagging Tails Academy and Inn.
Our Jack Russell had been found on Tuesday, August 19 on Aberdeen Road around 7:30 pm by a man who works at Hampton Roads Collision Center and he took her to Wagging Tails to see if they could locate her owners. She assured us our dog was happy, healthy and ready to see her family. Though we were very excited at this news, we were angry with Dirty Dogz because they completely lied to us. They had assured me on Thursday that she was okay, when in fact, she was not even in their care. She was only with them approximately 2 days. We had left our cell phone numbers in case of emergency and received no calls... We did receive one call at our home... At 11:30 am on Sunday, August 24 asking us to call them when we got in. They knew we were on vacation, but never tried to contact us prior to that. They also told me they contacted Animal Control, Peninsula SPCA, and local veterinarian offices notifying them of a missing dog... The few calls I made verified this was not true. They returned a nearly empty 3-lbs bag of dog food that my dog couldn't have eaten, since she was not there. They either fed it to the other dogs of dumped it to make it appear she had been there all week. We have witnesses to their negligence.
We do feel Dirty Dogz should pay Wagging Tails for boarding our dog. The owners of Wagging Tails, Phyllis Flanders, actually did not want to take any money from us... They were happy to reunite us with our dog. There is no way a place like Dirty Dogz should be allowed to remain in business. We were actually a little concerned from the start because the place was not clean and the odor was extremely bad, but it was a Sunday morning and when we dropped her off and maybe they had not yet had time to clean from the night before. There were large piles of feces and urine all over the room. The reception area (the front door area) had urine all over it. The back yard (which we did not see until we were searching for our dog) had a broken down fence, grass and weeds taller than the fence and several dogs, which we could hear, but not see. With weeds that tall, no air can circulate. This is negligence. When we were leaving the reception area, a dog escaped with us... I had to get it and take it back into the building... The worker, Jacob, waited inside... Wonder if this is what happened to our dog... Only no one got her.
As of today, Monday, August 25, we have not heard from the owner. To our knowledge, they know nothing about what we have found out... They still think Maddie is lost. They have made no attempt to contact us... Even though we left them a message to call us... No apologies were given... in fact, they were rude to us.
Do not leave your pet with them... They are not qualified to keep a flea!
D & s & j & b
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