t is not possible to give even a one star rating to Real Deal K9., but apparently my review can't be posted without some rating. These are people who are conducting business under false pretenses, and who are engaged in fraud and false advertising. I purchased an adult German Shepherd from them, who was supposed to be well trained. They told me that the dog was 1.5 yr old and weighed 90lb. There were pictures on their website of the dog, and they sent me videos of him performing obedience exercises, but the videos were at least a few years old. After they got my money, they never sent any kind of receipt, contract or health guarantee, and communication was sporadic to almost nonexistent. After unsuccessful attempts to have the dog shipped to me in Maine, I flew to LA to pick him up myself. I was met at the airport by a "friend" of the trainer, who turned over to me a sick, neglected and underweight dog. I took the dog to my own vet the next day.
The vet believes that the dog is between 5-6 years old. He had tapeworm, hookworms, and a preventable tick borne disease, Anaplasmosis, for which he is still being treated with antibiotics. He weighed only 65lbs and was a skeleton. I was told that his vet records and vaccination records would be sent the next day. They were never sent. His first vet appointment cost me $469. Three weeks later, to the day, I returned to the vet's because it was necessary to have all of his vaccines updated in order to license him and be in compliance with Maine law, as well as simply being a responsible dog owner. At 3 weeks, he weighed 80 lbs, and is still underweight. His pictures shown on the Real Deal website showed strong, healthy teeth. On arrival, his teeth were broken, worn down and covered with plaque and tartar. The vet says that the condition of his teeth is typical of dogs who are chewing rocks or the metal fencing of a kennel. I am an experienced dog owner, who has done a significant amount of obedience training with other dogs.
It is obvious that no one has worked with this dog for a very long time since he no longer has the skills demonstrated on his video. I will have to start over with him on the most basic commands. In addition to falsely representing this dog, they charged me $600 for shipping him to Maine. They did not return this money to me after I flew out to pick up the dog myself. I guess I have to consider this a very expensive rescue operation. I have initiated an investigation into Real Deal. It comes as no surprise that the first thing determined was that they provided an invalid home address. If you look at the website, there is no address given for the kennel, which supposedly is in Acton, CA, but has never been heard of by other legitimate kennels in the same area.
Rolando Barillas and Natasha Ahmad, who operate Real Deal, do not live at the residential address in Sylmar, CA which they provide to customers. They have not lived at this address since at least 2015, when they were last investigated for complaints regarding animal welfare. I am grateful to have rescued a wonderful dog, who would likely not have lived much longer in the condition he was found. After the first day that I had the dog in Maine, my phone number was blocked by Rolando,so I have no means of communication with them. I hope this review will prevent others from being defrauded as I was. I have pictures and veterinary records to support every statement made in this review.