“My heart sank”: Man returns to boarding kennel to find dog missing
By Kirsten Mitchell
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SHAKOPEE, Minnesota (WCCO) — A Chaska family says they dropped off two of their dogs at a pet care facility last month but when they returned to pick them up, there was only one. Doggie Doo’s Spa and Retreat in Shakopee says the dog jumped a fence while in their care.
From Chaska to Shakopee, the neon ‘Lost Dog’ signs are hard to miss.
“It’s been pretty hard, I’ve been out pretty much every day looking for him,” Cory Geis said.
On February 18, ahead of a family vacation. Geis took his two dogs Bella and George to Doggie Doo’s Spa and Retreat in Shakopee for a 2 hour assessment.
“I would figure during an assessment to make sure your dogs are okay with going to the facility that they would watch them the whole time,” Geis said.
But when he came back two hours later, Geis says George was gone and staff had no idea he was missing.
“My heart sank. I couldn’t believe this was actually happening,” he said.
George is not microchipped. Geis says he was wearing a red harness with tags. After looking at camera footage, they determined George jumped a 6 foot fence shortly after he was dropped off. A nearby home then captured video of him walking by around that time.
“I feel the negligence on their behalf in my case has been pretty bad,” he said.
Doggie Doo’s Spa and Retreat wrote on Facebook three days later: “We assume full responsibility and express our deepest apologies to the family and are committed to supporting them in finding George.”
They added it was an error in staff training protocols and they weren’t aware George was a jumper.
“We’ve had him at multiple dog parks, never once had him trying to jump the fence never showed any signs of wanting to jump a fence,” Geis said.
The business said this has never happened before and it’s thoroughly investigating to make sure it never happens again.
“They are more than just pets, they become part of your family,” Geis said.
Geis says he’s received an outpouring of support from the community who has helped search for George and gathered a reward for his return.
Doggie Doo’s Spa and Retreat said cameras show the dogs were only left alone long enough to let other dogs out to meet George. WCCO reached out to Doggie Doo’s Spa and Retreat for an interview but have not heard back.
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