Shake-A-Paw Puppies ripoff NEGLECTFULL & INTENTIONALLY selling SICK HELPLESS Puppies, Within 36 hrs. she was hospitalized & 3x's thereafter, Didn't honor their FAMOUS GUARENTEE & N.J Law, NO CONCERN of Dakotas health Toms River New Jersey
8/30/04 We Purchased an AKITA puppy(Dakota)from Shake a Paw Puppies.(846.00 Cash)
9/01/04 Dakotas 1st Visit to the Vet (Dover Veterinary Hospital)where she was found "unfit for sale" ,due to the pneumonia,and she needed to stay in the hospital.
Note:(Dakota was the 5th puppy there that week, bought from Shake A Paw)
9/02/04 Dakota was released from the hospital with two oral antibiotics to take at home. (321.00 Cash)
NOTE: Dover Veterinary Hospital would be closed untill 9/07/04.
9/03/04 (afternoon) I called Shake a Paw,I spoke to Jess. After telling Jess about Dakota,she instructed me to bring in the receipts,then "the Owner" would submit to insurance co. and have a check ready in 10 days.
9/03/04 (evening) Dakotas condition worsened and we brought her to Garden State Veterinary Specialist, where again she was hospitalized.(Deposit 1,500.00 Check)We visited Dakota every evening, she was not improving.
9/07/04 (morning)I went to Shake A Paw and waited untill they opened. I 1st spoke to one woman who instructed me to wait for "Moniquue" as she was the one who "handled" this stuff.
When she Monique arrived I gave her the receipts/papers she made copies of them,she too stated that we would be notified to pick up a check in 10 days,and if the Owner had any questions she would contact us.
Monique and I spoke for awhile,I told her of Dakotas
worsening condition.She stated that I should have brought her to them for treatment, I told her that threw my phone calls noone had informed or offered to care for her illness there.
I proceeded to make statements and ask questions,such as:
Dakota is receiving nebulization/antibiotics, she is also on I.V antibiotics. Monique replied to each comment with "we do that here."
She also told me of the current puppies one in particuler that was going back to the purchaser on that very day after 10 days of treatment(for the pneumonia).
I asked of their medical criteria,and the subject was avoided.I was then very uncomfortable and said I would speak to my husband about them caring for Dakota, and get back to her.
9/07/04 (evening)Dr.Kerrick (Dover Vet Hospital)called, and after speaking with him,my husband and I decided to transfer Dakota to his care.We did transfer her that night.
9/10/04 Dakota was released again.(420.00 Check)
9/10/04 I mailed a copy of this bill to Shake A Paw.
9/13/04 I called Shake A Paw and spoke to Cindy Rubino(the one who sold us Dakota) I went over all that Dakota had been threw,and she said they were having troubles with the lawyers and the ins. co.,and thats why they were offering store credit.She then said she would contact the Owner and call me back in 1 to 2 hours. She did not call.
9/13/04 (evening) Dakota, went to see Dr.Kerrick(Dover Vet Hospital),again she had to be hospitalized.
9/14/04 I again called Shake A Paw,asking for Cindy, she was unable to come to the phone.Later in the day Jess called me and apologized for Cindy not calling back.She said Cindy had a family emergency and would call me some time tommorrow.
9/15/04 Dakota was released. Two oral antibiotics,prescription wet dog food.Instructions: keep her as still as possible, only outside as needed.Dr.Kerrick would not charge us, he said he felt we had all been threw enough already.
(Approx.Treatment Value 500.00)
9/21/04 Dakotas oral medication. Dover Vet Hospital (14.00 Cash) I have not mailed a copy of this receipt to Shake A Paw)
9/28/04 I called Shake A Paw asking for Cindy, I was told by Jess that Cindy was unable to come to the phone and would call me when she could.
9/28/04(evening) Cindy called me back and she said she had spoken to the Owner and a check would be there for us to pick up on 10/28. I replied 10/28!?She said yes we are trying to spread them out.
I asked if she could tell me how much the check was for, she replied $321.00, again I replied 321.00? Is that the 1st payment? She said that was the total, I asked what about the 1500.00 and the 420.00? She said that was the only bill they had.
I told her I had dropped off ALL the receipts and paperwork on 9/07/04 to Monique. She said she had an estimate for Garden State Hospital not a bill. Itold her to check page 2 where it showed a 1500.00 payment,she replied yes but it is not an "itemized" bill, we need an itemized bill.
I said this has been going on for four weeks, not only did not one person call to see how (Dakota) our puppy was, but if you needed more information, someone could have told me any one of the times I called or common courtsey they could have called me.
I asked if this was something a lawyer needed to handle and she replied "o.k" This ended our conversation.
10/08/04 We have not yet received our registration from AKC, which they are supposed to be providing.
I just want to add that every time I was admitting or discharging Dakota from the Dover Veterinary Hospital, their was a puppy (purchased from Shake A Paw)and their companion either being admitted or released.
Pneumonia, which is contagious from puppy to puppy, is a secondary infection which begins as kennell cough. Meaning they knew these puppies were sick prior to their sale.
Wayne & Christine
Bayville, New Jersey
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Lauren
Malverne,New York,
U.S.A.
We Need to Stop Shake A Paw
#4Consumer Suggestion
Mon, February 20, 2006
We need to get together, get people together to go against Shake A Paw. I have also posted my complant. Please call Maria Sanzos, I will do the same tommorow. I do not want Shake a Paw to be able to hurt these puppies and their families anymore!
Krystle
PLAINSBORO,New Jersey,
U.S.A.
HELP CLOSE SHAKE A PAW
#4Consumer Suggestion
Fri, September 09, 2005
FOR ALL OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOST A PET, OR PURCHASED A SICK PET AT SHAKE A PAW IN TOMS RIVER, WE NEED YOUR HELP! MANY PEOPLE DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO AFTER THE BAD NEWS.....
YOU NEED TO CONTACT THE OCEAN COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND ASK FOR MARIA SANZO 732-341-9700.
TELL HER ABOUT YOUR UNFIT FOR SALE INFORMATION THAT YOU HAD RECEIVED FROM THE VET, OR EVEN YOUR COMPLAINTS OF ANIMALS IN THE STORE.
SHE HAD TOLD ME THAT IF ENOUGH COMPLAINTS AND UNFIT FOR SALES ARE MAILED IN, THE STORE WILL LOSE THEIR LICENSE, AND BE CLOSED. SHE HAD MENTIONED THAT THE STORE DOES NOT HAVE A BAD RECORD BECUASE NOT ENOUGH COMPLAINTS WERE SENT IN. LET'S HELP CHANGE THIS AND THEIR BELIEF THAT THE STORE IS GREAT AND ANIMALS ARE HEALTHY...
You need to call Maria and mail their unfit for sale papers to ..
OCEAN COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
PO BOX 2191
TOMS RIVER, NJ 08754
ATTN: MARIA SANZO
This will ensure no one else suffers like other dog owners with their losses.
PS: make sure you call Consumer Affairs in Ocean County and file a complaint. Also contact the Better Business Bureau in Trenton and file a complaint.
Anonymous
Toms River,New Jersey,
U.S.A.
Shake a Paw Puppies DOES sell sick animals with prior knowledge of their illness.
#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Mon, March 14, 2005
I have worked for them in the past and I have first hand knowledge of their practice. I am hearing more and more horror stories from those who have bought animals there lately, and I have recently heard that there is a current effort going on to close them down. This is what I know about Shake A Paw:
Shake A Paw's animals are confined to one room, and that room is not large enough to house the amount of dogs it contains. When one puppy gets sick, the sickness cannot help but spread to every other dog, as there is not enough space in the small areas meant for confinement of sick animals. If an animal isn't deemed sick enough to be taken out of the room, that animal is left out for sale.
The puppies at Shake A Paw are checked in once a week by a veterinarian. The vet comes only once a week and looks at only the new puppies, except in cases of severe infection. This means that illness is diagnosed and treated by the Shake A Paw staff, who can be as young as 18 years of age and have no prior medical training. While more experienced staff has seen cases of kennel cough before, and may be able to diagnose it accurately, it is wrong to put the prescription of medications in the hands of someone trained in sales, who otherwise has no medical background.
The puppies are overmedicated in many cases, possibly developing an immunity to the medication they have been given and ultimately becoming more susceptible to pneumonia. Also, I have seen staff members sell animals they have known to have kennel cough. This is illegal, so of course the customers are not told their dog is in need of medication. What ends up happening is the lapse in treatment causes pneumonia to develop quickly.
Shake A Paw also buys dogs from nonreputable sources, although they claim that all of their puppies come from breeders. One way they have of fooling customers is by telling them that the dogs come from liscenced puppy brokerage facilities, all inspected by the USDA to determine that they were not puppy mills. I believe that many of those who work there may actually believe this to be true, but in fact, the USDA inspects all puppy mills across the United States. All of these pups were bred in horrible conditions, and while they might not display any problems from this type of breeding or treatment, keeping this pet store open is supporting this kind of cruelty.
If you buy a dog from Shake A Paw, the animal may never show any signs of health or behavioral abnormalities, but you can be sure that your dog's mother is locked up in a tiny little pen, pushing out as many babies as her greedy owners are making her.
I would very much like for the person who posted this original report to join the effort to close down Puppy Prison.