Complaint Review: Petland of Largo

I bought my Bernese Mountain Dog at Petland of Largo September 18th. He, the puppy, was snotty - I did not know this was a sign of illness as he is my first dog and I did not know what to look for. He had an initial visit with my Vet the next day, in which he was deemed healthy (snotty nose was not obvious because I had just bathed him that morning). At the Vet's office he was lethargic which was mistaken as good behavior.

The next few days, he started puking mucus, had horrible coughs, and continued to be lethargic. I took him in for a sick-visit and the vet found that he had severe pneumonia. One entire lung was filled with fluid, the other had a severe infection and was on its way to being as sick as the other. The vet stated that he had to have been sick prior to my purchase and that it was a very real probability that puppies who had been around him had gotten sick too. He was prescribed an anti-biotic, cough medicine, and one other pill and was told if that did not start working within a day or so, to call the vet and ask for additional treatment.

I notified Petland of Largo and asked that I be reimbursed for all medical expenses and should this cause the death of my puppy, to be reimbursed for his full cost. I also asked that they quarantine their sick puppies and notify all pet owners who had purchased from them within the past month to watch for illness in their own puppy. The store manager agreed to reimburse medical expenses and that she would watch the other dogs. I was not happy with her response.

That day, the vet's office called back and asked for status on Harley, the puppy - I told her the medication was working and he seemed to be getting better, he would need no further medications. I clarified with the vet the next day that what I said was in reference to additional treatment, not the initial treatment which he continued to take. 

I did not trust what the manager at Petland of Largo had stated and she did not confirm that she would notify the other puppy parents, so, I decided to file a complaint with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. I received a response from Petland of Largo's president last night, 10/28/15, stating that I was misrepresenting Harley's health. Every word I had ever said, whether it was to the vet's office or on my complaint, was twisted around so that it all but said I was a liar and it was my fault. They claimed to have written me a check for reimbursement of medical expenses at the end of September. The rep at FDACS confirmed they had not but it would be 'soon'.

I stated that in order to satisy my complaint, Petland of Largo needed to:

• Reimburse all medical expenses
• Reimburse total cost of the puppy should the illness kill him
• Quaratine sick puppies
• Notify puppy parents of the illness
• Buy from a reputable source

The reimbursement of medical expenses, that has not yet been done, only satisfies one part of the complaint. 

I do NOT trust Petland of Largo, will NOT ever give them my money again, and WILL tell everyone I know about the unprofessionalism, the lack of care and respect they have for their animals and their customers, and that they sell sick puppies.