1/5
Board at Your Own Risk. No Liabilities, No Insurance and the Owner May Have You Arrested.
On June 17, 2017, the next to last day of boarding my Belgian Malinois puppy, Starr Pet Resort left a message on a phone number that I specifically had told them not to use informing me that my dog’s leg had been injured.
I was able to retrieve the message and come back a day early to pick my dog up at the hospital where she had been left. I was told that depending on treatment, the bill would be between $2,000 and $4,000.
Jim Brock, owner of Starr Pet Resort, initially refused to pay any portion of the bill saying it was just an accident, although he had only given vague, conflicting explanations as to what happened. He also threatened both my girlfriend and I that this was a criminal matter and he was reporting it to the sheriff to have me arrested if I did not pay for his week of boarding immediately by providing him with my credit card information. He also refused to release my dog’s collar, tags and leash left at Starr Pet Resort.
Jim had presented me with a contract for signature when I dropped of my dog on June 9, 2017. He stated that it was an “authorization to get medical care if needed”. In reality it was a liability waiver which states that Starr Pet Resort is not liable for anything that happens to your pet, and if they are found liable, it is only for a maximum of $500, or the value of the pet, whichever is LESS. None of these waivers are mentioned on the company’s website, nor was I advised of them prior to drop off even though I had visited the kennel in person and made a reservation over a month before boarding.
I made at least five written requests for information regarding the injury. These requests included video records as they advertise they have 24 hour surveillance, a written statement from the person with my dog when the injury occurred and the name of their insurance provider. These requests were all ignored.
I did receive an offer for a maximum of $2,000 from Starr Pet Resort on June 20, 2017. The offer may, or may not have covered my dog’s medical bills, but I did not know as it was very early in her treatment. The offer included a condition that I never say anything that they considered false or defamatory or pay damages in the amount of $5,000 for each violation. They broke my dog’s leg and then threatened to have me arrested. I could not agree to these terms.
Despite several written requests, I never heard from Starr Pet Resorts after June 20, 2017, until I saw them in Small Claims’ Court on September 11, 2017. The only additional evidence they brought was a note from the girl who was playing with my dog when the supposed accident occurred. It was dated almost three months after the incident even though I had requested this back in June. It also turns out that their insurance does not cover pets. They are a kennel. What does their insurance cover?
