Popular Dog Walking Service Wag! Accused of Neglect and Tragic Death

When a pup goes missing, it’s a terrifying experience. Is your pup safe? Scared? This is your baby. Each moment away is filled with the fear and worry of the unknown. What could you have done differently? Is it your fault? In this case, one dog lover thought he was doing the right thing, trusting the popular dog walking service Wag! while he was out of town. Unfortunately, this tail of negligence and failure to act appropriately resulted in a heartbreaking ending. We want to spread the word so other dog lovers might learn from this experience.

A Lovable Pup

Rey moved with her dad John from Wisconsin to California. The two-year-old Lab mix loved her human and her human loved her deeply. The two didn’t know many people in their new home, so they relied on each other for companionship. 

One weekend, her dad needed to travel. It was his first trip away. John decided to hire Wag! to walk Rey while he was gone.

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After a solid first walk, the experience started to sour. A dog walker was scheduled to arrive for the afternoon appointment. The walker marked the walk complete but told John they were unable to go outside because they could not find Rey’s leash.

So, John scheduled another walk for that evening.

Find Rey

That evening, a walker arrived to take out Rey. Despite Wag’s rules against it, the walker brought his girlfriend. When the pair arrived, they left the door open and then let Rey out of her crate. The scared pup growled and barked. Then she ran out the door. The Wag walker lunged at Rey and grabbed her by the collar. This scared her even more. Rey wiggled away and off.

Unfortunately, no one told John that Rey was missing until the next morning. The next walker arrived, and Rey was nowhere to be found.

According to his sister’s Facebook post, John did receive email messages in the middle of the night. However, no one called him. John later found out the walker responsible for Rey at the time of her disappearance had a “one-star” rating. John’s sister also said Wag! was not of much help:

Wag! sent out mass messages for people to look for her…They also put up flyers, and put their own phone number on it instead of my brothers so that they would have to be the middle man. This allowed for John to receive delayed tips of sightings.

A few days later Rey was found. She had perished after an accident with a train. Our heart breaks for John, Rey, and their entire family. This was a preventable tragedy.

This is not the first story of Wag! neglect. There is an entire website dedicated to negative Wag! experiences. When it comes to your dog’s care, we urge you to be extra diligent when hiring caretakers. This tragedy was avoidable. Services such as Wag! need to not only ensure proper vetting and training of their walkers but also need to take the correct steps to make sure dogs are returned home safely.

Our heart goes out to sweet Rey, John and his family. Please share this story. Because Every Dog Matters!

H/T Maribeth Cole Facebook post
Featured image c/o Maribeth Cole Facebook post

The post Popular Dog Walking Service Wag! Accused of Neglect and Tragic Death appeared first on iHeartDogs.com.




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