Petco Stops Using Dryers That Allegedly Gave a Dog Fatal Heatstroke
After a two-year-old golden retriever died in one of Petco’s drying cages last week, allegedly of heatstroke, the pet store chain says it has stopped using kennel dryers at any of its locations. After a grooming and bath, Colby the dog was left inside one of the dryers while his groomer left the store to go to a graduation. A vet told his owner he died of heatstroke.
“While we’ve confirmed that no heat was used, and is not used in any of our grooming salon dryers, as an additional measure, the type of kennel dryer Colby was housed in has been removed from service in all Petco stores,” the company said in a statement.
The Consumerist points out that this isn’t the first time a dog has died of apparent heatstroke inside one of the cages. A Lhasa Apso named Sadie died at a California Petco in 2008, prompting the company to stop heating its drying cages.
“We no longer use heat of any kind in the drying process in our grooming salons,” the company said in a 2011 statement about Sadie’s death.
Petco hasn’t offered an explanation as to how Colby suffered heatstroke in an unheated drying cage, but did admit that “animal care protocols were not followed when it came to Colby.”
The Virginia Petco employees who handled Colby have also been fired, the company said.
