"Are you serious?" Scheduled for routine grooming at Petco, two-year-old dog later pronounced dead
VIRGINIA -- His family says he had no health problems and was scheduled for a routine grooming at Petco. Hours later, the two-year-old Golden Retriever was pronounced dead at an animal hospital.
A family in Powhatan, Virginia is blaming human error by a groomer at Petco for their dog's death.
Allison Marks dropped "Colby" off at the Petco store to be groomed. When she hadn't heard back after a couple hours, she called the store, and was told to meet an assistant manager at a nearby animal hospital, WTKR reports.
By the time she arrived, Colby had been pronounced dead -- apparently from heat stroke.
The family says Petco's assistant manager said a groomer had accidentally left Colby in one of the drying cages because the groomer left to attend a graduation party.
Melody Newman says Colby was her mom's dog. The family is reportedly in shock over what has happened.
"My sister called and told me what had happened and I was like 'Are you serious?'" Colby was a very playful puppy. He just turned two in February," Newman said.
Petco has released the following statement to WTKR:
“All of us at Petco are heartbroken by Colby’s passing. The health and safety of pets is always our top priority and we take full responsibility for all animals under our care. We are taking immediate action to investigate and understand the situation. Our thoughts are with Colby’s family at this difficult time.”