More pet owners raise concerns about PetSmart boarding facility in Alexandria

Another pet owner is expressing concerns about their dog’s treatment at an Alexandria PetSmart boarding facility.

An investigation is already underway into a different dog’s death while being boarded at the Potomac Yard Pets Hotel.

Miss Daisy is a fluffy, spunky 12-year-old Pomeranian. But her owner, Medina Hudson-Odoi, said when she and her husband picked her up from the Potomac Yard Pets Hotel on June 19, they were shocked at her condition.

“The young man brought her to us and handed her to us, and she just covered in dried feces in her bottom, and it was all over her fur in the back,” Hudson-Odoi said.

Hudson-Odoi said her dog’s bottom was also red and raw. When she asked that Miss Daisy be cleaned up, she said the grooming manager initially refused. She said only after an hour of insisting did they do some cleanup, sending the family home with wipes and ointment.

“I told them that I want to speak to someone in headquarters or a supervisor or someone and have them to call me, and I never heard back from anyone,” Hudson-Odoi said.

When she saw News4’s story last week about one dog that had died at the Pets Hotel and another that had been injured, she realized she wasn’t the only concerned customer.

“There is something going on there that is very unacceptable in my book,” Hudson-Odoi said.

Andrew Noles began boarding his dog, Clark, at the pets hotel just a few days after Hudson-Odoi picked up her dog. Two days into Clark’s stay, Noles got a call from a vet delivering heartbreaking news.

“He was like, ‘Well, a PetSmart employee just dropped him off, and unfortunately she dropped him off deceased,’” Noles said. “I was hysterical, you know, of course.”

Alexandria’s chief animal control officer said the office is conducting an investigation into Clark’s death. Pet autopsy results from the state animal health lab are expected this week.

Hudson-Odoi said she thinks the pets hotel should be closed while the investigation is underway.

News4 also heard from another customer, who said his dog was bleeding from an injury to his nose when he was picked up from his boarding stay.

News4 sent PetSmart a series of questions about the pet owners’ concerns and is awaiting a response.