Some readers may find this story distressing.
Images via FacebookA petition has been created to shut down a Dublin kennel after one woman's horrific experience.
Dog owner, Kirsten, shared her story about leaving her beloved pet husky, Nova, in a kennel while she was away.
In a Facebook post, Kirsten told of how she left Nova in the care of a kennel just after Christmas 2018.
"On the 27th of December 2018 I brought my husky Nova to P&E boarding kennels to be boarded for 3 days while my entire family went to Iceland", she explained in the post.
"This was the first time I had left her with anyone that wasn’t a family member and I made the staff aware of the fact I was quite nervous leaving her.
"Nova had an ongoing issue with colitis and this was being managed with steroids for the last few months very successfully, she had also been checked by my vet prior to boarding and we had discussed taking her off the steroids as she was responding so well".
Nova before she entered the kennel. Image via FacebookKirsten explained how she gave the kennel multiple instructions on how Nova should take the steroid. However, when she went to collect her pet a few days later, she received horrible news.
"As we walked in the gate, myself and my mom where told that Nova had passed away and they had found her this morning in her kennel with blood coming from her", she continued.
"We where completely shocked and beyond devastated to hear this and at first I thought it was some horrible joke considering we had left a healthy dog in to be cared for 3 days earlier.
"I was then brought in to see my gorgeous dog who had been wrapped in what I can only describe as a ball in a black bag which was covered in masking tape, there was clearly so little care and empathy in the way she had been handled and dealt with since finding her.
"There are no words to describe how upsetting and traumatic it was to carry her to the car and take her home in what seemed a completely inhuman way.
She says she questioned the kennel on whether Nova had received her medication during her stay and they assured her she had.
After talking to her vet and confirming the identity of the dog via microchip, Kirsten sent Nova's body for a postmortem in UCD.
Kirsten claims she has since contacted the kennel multiple times since to inquire about Nova's last days but says they have refused to give her any of that information.
She finished off her post by saying:
"Nova was a once in a lifetime kind of dog for me and my family and has left a hole that will always be impossible to fill.
"She is loved and missed every single day and I hope writing this can stop a similar situation in the future. Clearly this kennels are not fit to provide the Level of care they advertise."
Kirsten's Facebook post has garnered a lot of attention online since she posted it yesterday morning. A petition has also been set up to close down that particular kennel and has already received over 6,000 signatures.
