Pet Groomer Shop Shutters After Rescue Dog Dies

SHELBY TOWNSHIP, MI — The death of a family’s beloved pet is forcing a local grooming business to permanently close its doors.

Max, a 7-year-old poodle/cocker spaniel mix, died during a routine grooming appointment at Shaggy Dog Puppies and Supplies, according to media reports.

Max, who was a rescued animal, had been a regular customer, stopping in once a month since the family found him through the Grosse Pointe Animal Adoption Society this spring.

“You don’t want to see it happen to anyone else,” Dennis St. Clair of Sterling Heights, told The Detroit News.

St. Clair said the staffers usually phoned when Max is ready, but when he hadn’t heard from them by 1 p.m., he went to pick up his dog.

“I see the groomer ... come running out of the back door, with a dog wrapped in blankets, soaking wet. I just thought, ‘Oh, my gosh. I hope it’s not our dog.’ And it was,” he recalled.

The groomer reportedly told St. Clair that Max had been removed from the grooming area and placed in an enclosed area, where he got into some chemicals stored in the room.

Max, who was barely breathing at the time, was rushed to the veterinarian, where he died later that day. During an initial exam, the veterinarian noted burns so severe that Max’s hair rolled off in some spots.

Donna Corbett, who owns Shaggy Dog Puppies and Supplies, told The Detroit News the incident was “a horrible accident.”

Corbett, who has retained legal counsel, may be looking at criminal charges in this case.

Shaggy Dog has also been notified about the pet owners’ plans to pursue a lawsuit, the St. Clair’s attorney, Charles Shaw told The Detroit News.

Corbett said “police have investigated and found nothing criminal happened.” However, Max’s owners want “everyone taking a look at this location and making sure if they shouldn’t be in business, they’re not,” Shaw said.

As a result, Corbett said the business is closing.

While cases like this tend to be isolated, other pet owners have come forward with complaints
against the grooming business, WJBK-TV reported.

In 2007, another family pet died after being left in a cage under a hot dryer too long, according to the TV station.

A few months before that, Joanne Gouleche was told that her dog, Gunner, had run away.

“She said, well, we had him harnessed in the back of the building to a fence and he wiggled himself out of that harness,” Gouleche told WJBK.

Gunner was never found.

“This is like a drunk driver who has been on the road, he's had how many convictions and he's still driving,” Gouleche said. “This is the same thing.”

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