Petland

I am not one to bash an organization, as I am a successful business owner in the Pittsburgh area with over 20 retail stores. I personally feel that as a business owner we have an obligation to the public to be honest and truthful about our products and services so that customers can make the best choice themselves. Petland in Robinson is an organization that does not uphold these same values.

It all began as my wife and I went into the Petland Robinson Township location to see the puppies. We were very excited to see a female English Bulldog for sale as we have been looking for another one to help entertain our eldest bulldog, Winston. The Bulldog was being sold for $4200, which included a 3 year warranty for medical expenses. First year was fully covered, and then each subsequent year it was a percentage which was covered. We were approached by the owner who seemed very creepy to say the least. The first thing that came out of his mouth was that these dogs do not come from a puppy mill and that he has sold 5000 plus dogs so he is trustworthy. This should have been a red flag because I do not go around telling people that they can trust me. That should be a “give-in” especially because he owns a retail outlet and he owes it to the community to treat consumers fairly and ethically.

We purchased the puppy and named her Ruby. She was an adorable bulldog and very affectionate from the beginning. Petland’s owner, Jeff Koury, sold us Ruby even though she was coughing, had nasal discharge and was sent home with us on antibiotics. The Health Examination, which is required by the state to be conducted by a licensed Veterinarian prior to us purchasing Ruby, did not indicate that she was sick (the health exam indicated NO COUGH). Petland did submit to us a subsequent health examination that was conducted by their staff which indicated she had nasal discharge and was being sent home with medication. Note, the staff at Petland are not licensed Veterinarians!

Two days after we purchased her we realized that she was getting worse so we took her to our Veterinarian at Bansfiend Pet Hospital in Cranberry, Pennsylvania who suggested that we get additional x-rays because they felt she may have pneumonia. We called Petland and the owner suggested that we give he a stronger antibiotic, Azithromycin, to combat her illness. This did not work and 5 days after we brought her home we had to rush her to the hospital because she stopped breathing. Again we contacted Petland and they told us to bring her back for a full refund. When we asked what would happen to her they said it was not our business. We elected to treat her at the hospital because we felt that the owner would kill her. Pennsylvania Puppy Lemon Law states that if the dog presents a life threatening illness that the buyer has 2 options; either return the dog for a full refund or receive reimbursement of medical bills up to the cost of the puppy if we chose to treat them. Again we spent $4200 plus tax ($4800) so we thought if we spent this much on treating her she should get better and we would be reimbursed for our medical expenses.

Four days later we had to put Ruby down and our medical expenses exceeded $6000. Petland only reimbursed us for the $4200 and did not offer to replace the puppy. So essentially we purchased a puppy from Petland in Robinson for $6200, that never lived longer than 10 days after we brought her home! 
Please do not support this company. I would hate for them to do this to someone else.