On the heels of the investigation by the Humane Society of the United States into the source of puppies sold by the pet store chain, Petland, Mark and Eglaeh Blasko, former Petland franchisees, have filed a lawsuit, openly stating Petland forced them to sell sick dogs from Hunte Corporation’s puppy mills and accusing both companies of sleazy, illegal business practices.
The lawsuit is brought against Petland, Inc.; Hunte Kennel Systems and Animal Care, Inc. and Hunte Delivery System, Inc.
Petland, Inc. is said to have recruited Blasko to open a franchise in the Indianapolis area. The agreement required Blasko to purchase puppies from Hunte.
Watch the HSUS video at the end of this article about the 8 month HSUS investigation revealing Petland obtains puppies from deplorable puppy mills.
According to the Complaint, more than one half of the first 60-65 puppies delivered to Blasko were ill with such conditions as parvo, pneumonia, upper respiratory infection and ringworm. Blasko spent thousands in veterinary care to treat the poor dogs.
Blasko says Hunte continued to send sick dogs to for sale in Blasko’s store. He said that, at first, neither Petland nor Hunte responded to his complaints. Then, according to the Complaint, Hunte agreed to retrieve the sick puppies but said the veterinary bills were too high and would only reimburse a fraction of these costs. This after Blasko’s veterinarian had given him a 50-75% discount.
Blasko also found himself paying the veterinary bills of customers who had to provide treatment for sick dogs purchased at his store.
With his reputation ruined and having lost money on the franchise, Blasko tried to sell the business. He said Petland refused to provide financing for a prospective purchaser, claiming with the high rent and loan amount required, he could not make money. According to Blasko, this was the same rent and loan amount Petland approved for Blasko. In fact, he said Petland had selected the location for the store as well.
Blasko was forced to close the business, and the finance company took the assets. Then, according to the Complaint, Petland stepped in and arranged for the same prospective buyer Blasko had found to obtain financing to open the store as a franchise.
Blasko also claims that prior to entering into the franchise agreement, Petland misled him about the revenues and costs. He said Petland would never show him documentation to substantiate their numbers.
In his lawsuit Blasko accuses Petland of violating the anti-trust laws with an illegal tying arrangement. 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1 According to the Complaint, Petland requires franchisees to acquire many goods and services from Petland and specified vendors, particularly Hunte.
Blasko charges Petland and Hunte conspired to violate the anti-trust laws through an illegal tying arrangement.
Blasko also brings claims against Petland for racketeering in violation of RICO, 18 U. S.C. Sec. 1962(C; fraud, negligence, and breach of contract. Hunte is also charged with breach of implied and express warranties of merchantability for selling sick puppies.
The lawsuit is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
Question: Can’t the American Kennel Club be included in this lawsuit for providing purebred papers to these puppies? They just take the money and run.
I purchased or should I say rescued an english bulldag pup from petland store in Massachusetts on 4-9-07 for $3,499.99 The following day I took her to the vets..She spent a total of 2 weeks in the ICU neer death. Petland clained she was 3 months old.. That was impossible she weighed about 3lbs. Petland did pay all of her bills the. She was then diagnosed with cherry eyes and hip displaysia..At only two years old. I wanted to contact the breeder, no luck as he Mr. gyorgy Rozsa is from Hungary. I think they are false registration info. I was told I am unable to reg her with AKC I can only reg her with Americas pet registry. I love my little girl and my heart is broken that some point she will be in pain.
People beware!!!!
Sue
Petland is a very good chain that has done huge amounts to improve animal welfare. Of course with any franchise there is a chance of failure. Petland stands behind every store and offers classes and personnel to aid stores. Puppies get sick sometimes talk to a worker at any animal shelter and they will back it up. Its like arresting or getting after a parent because their kid got a cold. Bad owners don’t make it because they dont know how to work with vendors and the ins and outs of the industry. Hunt stands behind their dogs if they sold nothing but sick dogs then they would be out of business simple as that… same with Petland. As a manager at a Petland franchise i have knowledge that most crazy advocates cant understand. As to some of they allegations that Petland has created a trust with their vendors… well thats the stupidest thing i have ever heard. Dogs can be bought from any reputable breeder not just Hunt and product from a huge amount of sources. Petland does work with many vendors to offer programs and discounts and thus recommends the best vendors or distributors but the franchisee has the choice. i pick and choose which works for me best if your to dumb to do that then you have no business owning a business. There are Petland stores that have been around for 10 or 20 years with the same owners. None are doomed to fail. I believe nearly all Americans will agree if you decide to start a business then you are asumming a huge amount of risk and its your own. No one is responsible for that then yourself so stop complaining.
Simply because the majority of the dogs that Petland gets are NOT AKC registered….the puppy millers do not care about the dogs registration just the money they get from the sale of the dogs…if they cared they would not sell to a “puppy broker” they would sell directly to the people that would be giving them good homes! It’s all about money…once people think about this and realize this…this sort of thing will nearly cease to exist. The animal’s health and well being is not even close to the top of the list for these types of people….the money is the end result and that is their complete thought through the crazy tunnel vision these people have! We do rescue and run into this type of crap all of the time…it’s the some of the saddest things I think humans can consider doing to helpless creatures…with out humans they suffer adn that is the whole sad part to all of this that is going on in the pet industry. None of the other registries that these dogs ARE registered to do not require the confirmation of breeding background as the AKC does…if you get an AKC you know you have a true pure bred….with any of the others who knows what the breeder actually let the dog breed with….some of them just let them breed at randon….so sad but true. Please pass the word and educate everyonen you know about this so we can put a stop to it!
Yes, I have seen sick puppies at our local petland and go in periodically to look over them…we do rescue and one day I asked to hold this little Italian Greyhound that was obviously sick since he was not doing anything but laying around with eyes open and we all know that is NOT normal. When holding him for almost an hour he was leaking feces on me and kept telling different people he needed vet. attn asap! They kept saying he has vet clearance already and was fine. I explained in detail why he was NOT fine but would not listen. I could not go back for a couple of wks so called to chk on him and he DIED! This kind of thing should not be happening…too many inexperienced KIDS are working in these shops so have no clue what to watch for. Itis not their fault it is their job and being young they a lot of times just do what they are told. In the end we need to close the puppy brokerage companies and puppy millers need more strict laws! Nearly impossible to close them down so we need to have more strict laws to keep these dogs healthy and not in cages w/o socializatin let alone human touch for years upon end…..that is the true life of a puppy mill breeder. it is horrific…they live in a cage and sometimes never get out except for vaccinations some even get hosed down for baths and never get out to potty so stand on wire bottomed cages to potty and live in same cage for years on end until some die or some get sold at puppy mill auctions to another breeder who breeds them more until they die or sold to someone who really cares which is not very common….please put a stop to this!!!! We do rescue and see this constantly!!!!!! it is sickening to say the least!
HUGE AMOUNTS TO IMPROVE ANIMALWELFARE??? PLEASE!!! I SEE FIRST HAND THE SICK PUPPIES THEY SELL, 3 HAVE DIED IN THE PAST MONTH AT ONE WISCONSIN CHAIN. THE OWNER BUYS THEM FROM AMISH MILLS IN DALTON WISCONSIN. GIARDIA, URI, CHRONIC DIARRHEA, KENNEL COUGH, COCCIDIA, .IT’S DISGUSTING.PUPPIES GET SICK SOMETIMES??? ALL OF THESE PUPS ARE TOO SMALL AND ON MEDICATION AT THE STORE AND COME IN SICK OFF THE TRUCKS. YOU MUST WORK FOR PETLAND!!!!!
I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT THIS STORE LOST 3 PUPPIES SINCE DEC.2008 FROMM HUNTE PUPPIES WITH PARVO! THE WAY THE MANAGEMENT TALKS ABOUT CUSTOMERS THAT ARE HONESTLY UPSET DUE TO THEIR PUPPIES BEING SICK IS HORRENDOUS!! HE LIES ONE SPECIFIC PUPPY WENT HOME TO A DALTON POLICE OFFICER, THEY KNEW THE BOXER WAS SICK!!! STILL SOLD IT AND MAKES FUN OF THE GUY CAUSE HIS FIANCE CALLS AND COMES IN COMPLAINING AND HE DON’T!!
i have no problem with petland selling food and pet supplies, or even fish and some birds. the company is good to their employees (my sister has worked for the company for several years). but i do not think that any pet store should sell puppies.
i worked for petland for several months, in the kennel, and i am appalled at the conditions that the puppies were kept. for the most part petland it self doesn’t know where they’re puppies come from. now i’m not saying that they don’t come from puppy mills i’m just saying that they come in off a hunt truck and they are sold. they are kept in the kennel all by them selfs at all time some time for two or three months or more before they are sold. in the store where i worked the vet (who was and offal man) would come in to give the puppies their shots and use the same needle on EVER dog. then the kennel manager would keep those needle and continue to use then for several months. when a dog did get sick we would put it in isolation. which meant that the dog was now in a kennel by it self in a room all by it self. even the people who have worked in the company for years don’t know what goes on with the dogs. the store owners lie when they say their dogs come from the best breeders in the country, all the dogs at petland come form hunt and the owners have not clue where hunt gets them and they don’t care as long as they can sell them for three time what you would pay if you went to a reputable akc registered breeder.
my point is that the means by which petland get and care for their dogs are shady to say the least, and even if the puppies really did come from the countries best breeders they still shouldn’t be aloud to sell puppies at all. IT IS JUST CREUL ALL AROUND!!!
it you want a dog go t a shelter or buy one for a reputable breeder.
I recently purchased a male Maltese puppy from the Tallahassee Petland location. He was supposedly 8 weeks old. I signed all of the necessary paperwork. Little did I know that I might as well have signed away his life and my ability to fight back. My payment of $2,000 might as well have been given away. I brought Kai home the first day, and was astonished at home quickly I fell in love with him. He was small but still a very active little pup. The morning after came around, and I noticed that he was beginning to act sluggish. I tried feeding him regular food and the sugar substance they give each owner upon purchase. Apparently it’s supposed to perk them up. It did no such thing for my Maltese. He could not keep any of it down, as he vomited it all up. I took him to Petland immediately and asked for help. They told me that I should see their recommended vet. I met with the veterinarian, who decided Kai should be kept for the day for observation. Upon pick up, the receptionist told me that in her 20 years working for this clinic, she had seen countless cases like mine, and that I should take him to the emergency clinic immediately. For two more days, I travelled between the day vet and the emergency clinic, shelling out over $700 in the process. During my afternoon trip from the veterinarian, Kai died. I called the doctor and he told me that this puppy had been immune to the wormer, and that Kai should have been checked numerous more times prior to his adoption. When I spoke to Petland, they instructed me to bring him in the back of the store, so I wouldn’t “disturb the other customers.” I was promised a call-back after some type of autopsy was performed. When I tried to follow up with them, they told me that my doctor ruled it malnutrition, and that I was at fault. I later spoke to the veterinarian’s receptionist, and she informed me that this man receives kick-backs from Petland when he rules a death the owner’s fault.
So now, I am without a dog and have lost nearly $3,000. Is there anything that can be done? Can I join this lawsuit?
I worked for hunte for over 6 years and know that most of the dogs we sold are akc registered. Thats why hunte gives 20-50 dollar bonses for having that registry.
I worked for hunte for about 6 years and i know that this company needs shut down. Several years ago we tried to experiment with new medicine. I watched so many animals die do to Andrew Hunts need for makingthings cheaper. The things you here abount Hunte are true but things are way worse than you think. I used to micro chip dogs and im not certified to do this. But this is what i was paid to do. Ive watched them give anastesia to dogs that were in pain and the objective was to kill them. AND IT DID. If you have any questions call me at 417-241-0982 i will help with the shut down of the infamous Hunte Corp.
Petland really does sell sick dogs.We have a Golden retreiver that needs both hips & both knees rebuilt,and also has a genetic skin disorder.This dog is only 1 year old now!Petland will not do anything about these problems.We expect to spend about $12,000 to fix this dog.
My son purchased a 15 week old yorkie from Petland Monroeville which is a franchise owned by Clay and Jessica Slivko. The puppy was purchased on March 1, 2009 and died on March 8, 2009. The puppy was sold sick, and several of the attending physicans have written letters for the class action lawsuit against Petland, Hunte, and hopefully The Slivko’s that own the Petland Monroeville store. The puppy was in the emergency room after 4 days, and died on the early a.m. nearing the 8th day. They did not care about my son, or his loss. They are not going to be responsible. We researched everything, and the puppy was from Hunte and a breeder Tim Hyatt from Oklahoma. Mr. Hyatt has not had inspections in years from the USDA. I have the documents from the USDA. The Slivkos were supposedly busy working 14 hour days, and were “simply” not available according to Mr. Slivko. This is not going to go away. We are a huge support team, and as a team…Petland will have to answer to this disgrace. What will it take to shut down Petland Monroeville. Several customers have formed together that also had their puppies die from Monroeville. Monroeville is a franchise…so Petland Corporate said that the Slivko’s are the responsible party. Maybe lawsuits one at a time for each franchise is the way to go. How many puppies get to die before the Slivko’s get out of the Hunte breeding business?
i can assure you the manager in question on this complaint is no longer with petland, please allow us to change your opinion of our store & visit us again!
I cannot believe you are justifying Petland. Open your eyes! For you greedy power hungry business men it is all about money, THATS IT You should be ashamed of yourself. I want to know what I can do to help this puppy mill thing is crazy!
I am very upset with Petland. My daughter purchased a beautiful Japanese Chin Puppy in 2007 and took him home. He had a cold in the store, or so they told us, and she nursed him to health, vet, and then vet again a few months later for another infection, and then vet again later in the year of 2008. It is April 16th and tomorrow, Sammy will be euthanized for ACUTE RENAL FAILURE. You should see how this dog is suffering from this disease. We have provided palliative care while our daughter came to terms with this and she has forked out no less than $600 of her STUDENT LOAN money for her college education to try to save this dog.
Tell me, how is she going to replace that, or the empty place in her heart that loved Sammy so much? I am very discouraged, Petland, that you did this to her. We got a dog from you that seems to be just fine, but now I am worried. Are we going to be going through this with Gizmo?
My daughter has told me she will never buy a pet from a pet store again. She’ll go right to a breeder someday. But not yet. It will take her a long time to recover from Mr. Sammy’s death. Dogs become a part of our family, Petland. Please be responsible! Check your breeders carefully! There’s a dog and his family on the line here. I am very sad that Petland was not more responsible in the situation that involved my daughter’s dog’s selection. I am going to ask Petland to consider replacing the $600 that my daughter lost out of her education funds to save this dog, but I doubt they will. Please, Petland, be more responsible! Your lack of care in this regard broke my daughter’s heart! Sammy, always rest in peace. 8/07 to 4/17/09.
This summer at the Noblesville Farmers market, on pets day, I am donating 100% of all of my earnings as a soapmaker in Sammy’s memory to help return the money my daughter lost to her college fund. I am going to ask Petland to henceforth, adopt stricter measures with dog selection. Please.
OMG!!!! I knew the problems with petland and my heart brokes about it. Never heard about vets getting kick backs from them!!!! So shocked!!!! That is the worst I have ever heard or read revolving around pet land!!!! I am a vet tech and new in the field, I could never work for a place like that. We do give free first exams to petland pups but very honest about the shape of puppy and have wrote letters of complaint to and about petland. Some thing needs to be done about this.
We bought a Pomeranian Puppy from Petland in Henderson, Nevada.
We traced back to the “alleged Breeder” and found her to be the dumbest person on Earth.
She knew nothing about who she sold the puppy to, and declined comment about AKC Registration.
This leads me to believe that Petland also somehow Forges the AKC Registration Forms.
We found that the Breeder was only paid about $350.00 for this Puppy.
A far cry from the $1600.00 we paid!
I called the Store Manager on this, and he said “we sell only quality pets, and by charging you that much, we assume that the pet will be getting a good home.”
I thought that his response was one that a Car Dealership would give.
It was all about the money!
Perhaps if these Jerks were sentenced to a nasty prison somewhere overseas, that is much like the Kennels where they purchased these puppies, then perhaps justice would be served!
My sister fell in love with a Chocolate Pomeranian they had there, and paid $1200.00 for it.
A rather high price, when you concider it was fixed, allegedly after it had Hernia Surgery.
She spent hundreds of dollars on Vet Bills the first 3 month, as he had respiratory problems.
I wonder how much of a kickback the Vet they tell you to take it to gets?
I am disgusted by Petland, and I hope they will be forced to pay for their actions.
Anyone with information about the Lawsuit, please feel free to contact me.
Mystic_al2004@Yahoo.com
Allen
I called the Manager of the Petland in Henderson, Nevada, with some questions about the “alleged” Pedigree that came with our Pomeranian Puppy.
I found it rather odd, that the Breeder herself, (which we traced via this Pedigree) had no knowledge of the Pedigree, nor could she even verify that the dog was Legally AKC Registered!
I found this to be “questionable” to say the least!
IF this Puppy did have the Pedigree that Petland Produced, why was she only selling the Puppy for $350.00 ?
Something just doesn’t add up here!
We spoke to the Manager, once we learned of the Puppy Mill Investigation, and also learned that this Breeder was no longer in Business.
He said that “their was no foundation for the Puppy Mill Investigation, and that he knew nothing about the Breeder being shut down.”
He told me that they only buy Quility Puppies, from Quality Breeders. Total Bullshit!
The man was damn lucky I was dealing with him on the phone, rather then in person, or he may have wound up in one of the nasty pens they keep the puppies in.
We bought this puppy, or should I say “rescued” him from there in hopes of using him as a Breeder.
We have since bred him once, and 2 of the puppies were dead on birth, and the other one died a day later.
I now question if this is due to some genetic problem, that was caused by him being a product of a Puppy Mill.
I am glad that Petland is shut down, but I still think they should be made to pay!
Our Dogs are family, and they don’t seem to understand that.
They are only in it for the money!
The last time we went by the Location, it said they were closed, and the sign directed you to a different Store.
I assume they are still up to their old tricks, but under a different Business Name.
We will be out that way next week, and I will make it a point to go buy there, so that we can warn others about this New Pet Store they have opened.
Allen
The Henderson, NV Petland you people claim to be calling the manager has been closed since December of 08. So how did you have conversations with the manager? The store is only now reopening (Aug 09). If you want people to support your claims, maybe you should check your facts before posting false statements and stories. People might beleive you more if you told the truth. Kind of hard to call a manager of a store that has been out of business for the last seven months and claim you had a conversation with them or bought a puppy recently from them.
Re-read the post. They never said when they talked to the store and they know that it’s closed.
my grandma had nothing better to do with her money, im assuming because she purchased not 1 but 2 english bulldog puppies from petland in arizona. She paid over 3500.00 for each dog. They have been wonderful dogs. grandma bought them as companions.not for breeding purposes. Where were suprised when our 4 yr female became pregnant with a litter of 10 puppies! She and our male bred naturally and she also whelped naturally. When it came time to get the litter registration, we only had it for the male…hmm i did alot of research let me tell you, come to find out acconrding to the owner here, the never recieved the AKC papers from the breeder, Alta Magwell. some where on her paoer work was list hunte corp. It took me almost 10 weeks to finally get this straightened out. but when i went to register momma they had us taking “ownership” of her 7-18-09. which ment the puppies whelped 5-30-09 were properity of Petland. WRONG!! this has been our dog for 4 yrs. ill be damned if these puppies belong to them. After dealing with owner of petland and a higher up at AKC we had this situation worked out. but what got me the most….
as i was working with the “kennel manager” she asked me if i knew if our female had came from an individual breeder or a “distributor”. WTF they get them from a distributor? car parts come in mass quantaties from a distributor not puppies!!!
The management may have changed, but the current owner is no better. He would rather euthanize sick puppies rather than give them the medical treatment they require. He also has no people skills and tells customers that their pet is going to die rather than showing a little compassion and telling them that we will do our best to help. He also talks badly and jokes about his customers, employees and former employees behind their backs. DO NOT BUY PUPPIES FROM MIKE AT PETLAND OF DALTON, GA!!! He does not care about his employees, customers or the animals in his store. He cares only about his profit.
This is scary, reading what I see here! It literally has sent a chill up my spine. I purchased a pomeranian puppy from Pet Land in Hoffman Etstes, IL on 8-23-09. It is 5 days later and that puppy is currently fighting for her life, having been diagnosed with Parvovirus and Giardia. My vet has confirmed that given the timeline between purchase and when symptoms became known, this puppy had the disease well before it was sold to me. She is a dear sweet puppy and I was given the choice of returning her to the store (where no doubt, she would receive no treatment and would likely be returned to her “supplier” and murdered) or I could spend the money on agressive treatment that may or may not work for her.
I began investigating complaints and came across this sight. The discussion about Hunte made me wonder so I looked closer at my paper work. To my terror, I discovered that the distributer listed was Hunte. How can this happen? Can’t anyone stop these monsters?
You, who defend Pet Land and Hunte, are sick monsters praying on unknowing individuals for nothing more than greed. I thought I did my research well before going ahead, but I never dreamed of the horrors I’ve since discovered and the frigid, unfeeling attitude of Pet Land and Hunte and those that defend its practices. YOU WILL BE STOPPED! I WILL JOIN THIS LAW SUIT!
Please, anyone with information on how to join this law suit and take action against these bastards, let me know!
amen to the unidentified person that made the comment on dalton petland’s new owner!!!for the customers looking for the customer service they got from nov 2006 to nov 2008 sorry folks your not gonna find it at this store the days of JOAN AND BRUCE ARE GONE THERE ARE A FEW VERY FEW OF THERE EMPLOYEES LEFT THERE AN THERE TIME IS LIMITED!! MANAGEMENT WAS NEVER REALLY THE ISSUE SINCE NOVEMBER OF 2008 CORP PETLAND WAS RUNNING THE STORE (FROM OHIO) (ORDERING STRICTLY HUNTE PUPPY’S) MIKE EDWARDS IS NOW OVER THIS STORE AND HE IS JUST AS BAD AS CORP. / WORSE BECAUSE HE DON’T EVEN PRETEND TO LIKE THE CUSTOMERS !!! BRAVO TO THE CUSTOMERS GOING THE EXTRA MILE TO THE MALL PETSTORE OR EVEN AS FAR AS CHATTANOOGA!!!DALTON PETLAND BEWARE THIS HAS NOT EVEN BEGAN WE WILL CLOSE YOU DOWN YOU WILL NOT STAY IN OUR TOWN MR.EDWARDS GO BACK TO WHERE YOU CAME FROM CAUSE IT SURE AINT GEORGIA!! REMEMBER IT’S JUST THE BEGINING OF THE FIGHT , PACK IT UP OR YOU’LL BE JUST WASTEING MORE MONEY CAUSE WE ARE GONNA CLOSE YOU DOWN!!!
Unfortunately you purchased a breed that typically has hip problems and skin issues and you could of just as well purchased straight from a breeder and had the same outcome. Get real you are dealing with living animals and just like humans congenital defects happen 2-3% of the time and unfortunately it happened to you and your dog. It is not Petlands fault you are just looking to blame someone for an unfortunate reality.
From a member: Â
I bought my dog from Petland last October. I would not give a million for her.
But the vet they have for Petland here lied on her paperwork, I looked at the scales myself and it was 6.7 and they put 8.5, then said she had Diarrhea when I brought her in which she did not, so they gave her what I thought was prescription meds and it was supplements from the store in a medicine bottle with label. She started vomiting and I called, only to get a call back 25 hours later, it was the supplement but over time I realized she has food allergies.
It has taken me trials to find the right food for her, Wellness, no grains, she threw up on her heartguard so we suspect she is allergic to Beef as well, so no beef. I had looked at the breeder on her paperwork, googled it and found she was selling puppies on a site so I emailed her, she responded back. I questioned things but at no time did I think she was a puppy mill.
I love my little dog more than words could say, she one morning was limping on her hind leg, found out through my Vet that she has a luxating Patella. That is usually through the gene pool of hers. So I thought about getting another dog, not to replace mine but to add to our family as I am in complete love of my baby girl and she is spayed so there is no desire to breed, I always spay my animals in the past, never have I ever bred a dog or any animal.
I know now that she will probably be my only pet because she probably will need more Vet care down the road after seeing this. You can imagine my heartbreak to know her parents which the breeder spoke of that my dog is like her parents….God I hope not. But it breaks my heart to know her parents are in this kennel being bred for more puppies to go to Petland. You can imagine the age my dog was in flight to here. I bought her at 13 weeks old, they said she had been there a while and gave me a discount. I went to Petland 3 weeks ago, just to see their pets, I held a baby dog in my hands. I didn’t buy her but they told me she was 13-1400.00. To me she was dirty, and in looking at her and knowing what I know about dogs now, she isn’t a good candidate for the breed, her coloring, just looking at her ears, etc…my heart broke. My husband said, I can’t believe you didn’t buy her and I looked at him and said, which I can’t believe I said it, she looked as if she was sick. I washed everything I had on and myself carefully before I hugged on my dog for fear of diseases after seeing this baby dog.Â
I lived in this town 25 years ago and Petland was run out of Malls, etc…from lawsuits over puppy mill puppies in their stores. To see them up and running again I thought well they must have learned their lesson. No they didn’t and I feel they are even worse now. I can’t imagine the price tag they have for puppy mill dogs. You are better off looking in your classified ads, rescue establishments as I had done in the past to get you a healthy pet. Your chances are better if you do than buying with Petland.
What did the puppy even die of? And I hope it wasn’t Hypoglycemia or low blood sugar.
I am trying to do some research and get info for our case against Hunte and Petland. We bought a dog in may that was supposed to be french bulldog, it seems as though he is boston terrier and we don’t know what. we have someone trying to help us with his pedegree, it seems as though his parents are not even AKC dogs, but they registered our puppy. Do you know of anything with the pedegrees that can help us?
We know that our dog came from the Hunte Corp via a breeder named Jason Criswell in Arkansas. But all we can find on him is his USDA garbage..
anything you can tell us would help our case I am sure.
sincerely, deb.
I went in to find a warm outerwear for my boxer who we rescued months ago with demedex mange and hair loss. My husband and I have also wanted an english bulldog for a year now but can’t afford one at this time. The minute I walked in I fell in love with an english bulldog they had in the front window. The lady took her out and let me hold her. Her brother was being played with in the cubby next to me. I put the girl down and she immediately started coughing and hacking. I knew she had kennel cough as I have experienced it before with my boxer. She denied this and said she had been diagnosed with “allergies” by their vet. They wanted 2000 dollars for this puppy. The other couple ended up buying her brother. A week later I called and they still had her. I went by to see her. Her cough was worse, her respirations were labored and you could hear the congestion in her chest just from holding her. She blatantly had pneumonia now. The attendant said their vet had put her on medicine, whether that is true I don’t know!! I gave them a verbal offer for her which of course was much less than 2000 because she was 4 months old now and sick. The bottom of her paw pads were callused from being on the wiring for 3 months of her life and she could barely breath now. She would just lay her head on my chest and go to sleep. When I put her down she would look up at me saying with those sad eyes please pick me back up. The attendant questioned Mr. Mike Edwards about the offer and blatantly turned it down and would not give a lower price. I later had Mr. Edwards come out and talk with my husband and I to negotiate a price. He started the conversation off with “I thought we made it clear that this dog is NOT for sale.” I was confused! When I had came in that day to see the dog, there were two girls holding her in a cubby with one attendant urging the lady to fill out a credit application to get financing to buy her, which of course they didn’t. He said “I would never sale a LESS THAN PERFECT dog” and that she is currently being seen by their vet and it would be at least 7 to 14 days. When I asked the price of the dog once she was “better” he very hatelfully stated the price is 2000 dollars!! Mike Edwards was very rude and is blatantly not fit to be in the pet business. I found out first hand that he cared more about the dollar signs than these animals. This bulldog is still there so be warned if you come across her. My heart goes out to her every day I think about her. I even offered to sign a waiver that I wouldn’t bring her back under their “pet guarantee” even with her being sick. I just wanted to get her out of there and take her to MY vet. Why would anyone want to buy a pet under a guarantee that if they get sick or even DIE that you can come back in and get another animal. Why don’t they guarantee the dog you’re buying in the first place?!?!
Sincerely, Disheartened and disgusted.
Read the owner’s statements. This isn’t just one hip or one knee or just skin problems. This is several issues all at once–both hips? Both knees? And skin problems? That smacks of a breeder who is not paying attention–i.e. someone who with an eye for profit and little interest in improving the breed or the fact that they are producing someone else’s future family member. A reputable breeder purchases dogs from lines that reflect this. They pay to have their own stock genetically tested. When they have a puppy with a problem, they sell it neutered or spayed at a greatly reduced price with a full disclosure statement or give it away or keep it or euthanize, depending on the severity of the problem. Additionally, a reputable breeder is also willing to take the dog back at any time. The price you pay for this is the price you pay for a lifetime of support. Petland charges the same price as many high quality breeders and does not offer this kind of support.
I’ve visited a Petland store and was dismayed to see puppies that were younger than eight weeks being sold. Puppies that were quite clearly unhealthy and depressed. It nauseated me.
They prey on the uninformed prospective pet owner and should be shut down. Unfortunately, this doesn’t look like it’s going to happen.
It’s about time the community of dalton ,& it’s surrouding areas speaks out on PETLAND DALTON= i noticed a change around July 2008 the Employees seemed disinterested in customers, Management was never available, in the first couple years of this stores existence employees would eagerly help & offer to help you carry heavy purchase’s to your car, now they pretty much ignore you unless you have already accumulated a buggy full of product, they will knock you down almost to relieve you of your 35 lb bag of dog food & carry it 10 feet to the counter, but once they ring up your purchase, they stand there stupidly looking around rolling there eyes waiting for you “the customer” to hurry up an pay so they can go back to talking on the phone to their friend or family or text someone!!they do not offer to carry that 35 lb bag of dog food to the car they got your sale(commision) they no longer need to be courteous to you= instead of texting an playing around with coworkers maybe these sales people should use their free time to help the single person in the kennel trying to balance all her duties maybe they could bathe that puppy with the CRAP matted to her BUTT fur!! maybe they could give that bulldog a toy or even get that ugly puppy out that no asks for and play with it let it know a kind hand!!! the management, sales people an even the owner of this store is a shame to the human race!!! I do want to applaud that little girl in the kennel with big BROWN Eyes sitting in the cage with the Puppy loveing it!! to the rest of you at this store you should try some course in pet an people skills!!
I ask anyone who has witnessed first hand actions such as the above, or if you have purchaseda puppy from this store under false pretenses (they told you the puppy was not spayed or neutured & a few months later you find out they had been fixed= or they told you the puppy was spayed or neutured & they weren’t) or they tell you the cough is nothing to worry about so you take the puppy home & to your vet an the poor thing has phenomonia or geoardia!!i think you people see what I am getting at= CALL YOUR LOCAL PAPER HAVE THEM DO AN ARTICLE!! THIS STORE WAS CITIZENS CHOICE PETSTORE IN 2006=2007=2008 BECAUSE OF THE PEOPLE THAT WERE THERE “NOT” BECAUSE THEY WERE THE ONLY PETSTORE IN TOWN THERE WERE OTHER PETSTORES THEN, THEY EARNED THEIR PLAQUE! IF THIS STORE GETS THE 2009 PLAQUE FOR READERS CHOICE PETSTORE IT’S BECAUSE THE PAPER HAS NO OTHER PETSTORE TO OFFER IT TO!!! DAILY CITIZEN DON’T HAND IT OUT BECAUSE SOMEONES GOT TO GET IT(PETLAND DALTON IS NOT READERS CHOICE)(IT’S THE READERS ONLY OPTION UNLESS WE GO TO CHATTANOGA, I MYSELF USE WAL-MART FOR PET NEEDS,CVS ALSO HAS VERY GOOD DEALS ON PUPPY PADS,FREDS HAS A NICE SELECTION OF PET CLOTHS AND ACCESSORIES FOR YOUR PETS, FEED AN SEED ON HIGHWAY 41 HAS A GOOD SELECTION AN LOWER PRICES FOR ALL YOUR FLEA & TICK PRODUCTS,WORMERS, ETC. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SUPPORT “DALTON PETLAND” YOU HAVE OTHER CHOICES, LETS RUN THEM OUT OF HERE AN SEE ABOUT GETTING “H20 PETS”BACK IN BUSINESS OR KEEP”TROPICAL PET PARADISE” OPEN!!!
No one should EVER buy a pup from a pet store. They ALL come from puppy mills. You didn’t “rescue” anything. You just put money in the millers pocket and another pup will come fill the spot you “rescued” your pup from. It’s people like you that keep this vicious cycle going.
You know nothing about breeding. You should leave the breeding to the responsible breeders who breed to better the breed. They do all the genetic testing required for their particular breed, their dogs have their ch titles, etc. That is only 2 of the many, many things responsible breeders do.
Do you realize how many dogs are being killed in shelters because there are no homes for them, yet you ignorantly add to the numbers.
Do your dog a favor and get her spayed for God sake!
is there a way i can email you directly. I just got a puppy from there and have had nothing but issues and dont know where to go from here. I was told I cant talk to store owners…
Did you know that puppies can get parvo up to 4 months of age, even AFTER they have all their vaccinations? Ask any vet. Parvo comes on so quickly. If the puppies were exposed to it at Hunte Corporation, they most likely would have died before they reached the pet store. It is sad, but if they got it at the pet store then the pet store should have treated it. If treated properly, parvo doesn’t kill puppies.