Coddled Critters, LLC

I went into this situation with the idea that customers who are nice are more likely to be treated better, that the employees would be more apt to go out of their way to be able to help them
I bought a five day pass for my dogI haven't finished out the daysOn a Wednesday I took my dog in from 8am to 5pm for the daycareThursday evening she began having this horrifying deep, dry heaving that was happening constantlyI ran her to the vet and he told me that my dog caught kennel cough and asked if she had been at daycare or boarded within the past few daysHe stated she undoubtedly got it from there
I do not blame Coddled Critters for this at allI realize that dogs get sickIt happensThey are unable to control that; however, the way it was handled afterwards is what left me a little upsetDue to being a full time graduate student while also working 40+ hours a day I have a crazy schedule and am low on moneyThe vet bill was $dollars so I wanted a refundI sent them an email because I did not have my phone on me Friday until late and I did not receive a reply, so I left them a voicemail later that nightThe voicemail was extremely nice like I stated above I didn't blame them, I just wanted my money back because I need to pay off the bill and don't want to risk my dog getting sick againhours go by of them opening Sat and I don't get a call back (even from an employee just to say hey our manager isn't here but will call you Monday or something) so I decided to go in in person, as I need the money(I also expect someone that has my money to be more prompt with returning messages) I walk in to two women sitting at the deskI explain the situation to one of them and she tells me she will have the manager get me a refundShe explains she will not refund me for the day my dog got sick, just the days I haven't used, and that honestly was a bummer to meIt's only $to the business, but that's a lot for me to help pay off the vet bill, and would be good customer service
As I'm talking with this gal, the other woman on the other side of the desk chimes in, "Oh yeah, you called us more than once, you called us multiple times" so rudelyI honestly was taken abackEven if that had been me, she should have not come at me with such attitudeClearly they have another customer that wants information and is not getting answersI could feel that the employee was ready to attack me and be rude, but I immediately politely corrected her and said, "Actually, as I said, I called once and left a voicemail." To which she backed down and mumbled she must've been thinking about someone elseThat mere few seconds immediately in itself turned me off from the facilityIf an employee was willing to be that rude to my face, when I was being very nice especially considering the situation, I would not want to leave my dog alone with them
The employee informed me the manager will be calling me Monday when my money is refundedI'm at least grateful I will be getting those few days back, even though I think I should get the day back that she got sick as well
The manager never called me but instead responded to my google review that they don't do refunds even though their employee told me they would and I was NEVER told refunds aren't allowed

The staff at Coddled Critters is great, and really look after my dogI've been taking my Am Staff mix there for years, and she loves going thereThe staff really takes an interest in seeing that her needs are met, that she has fun, and is safeThe owner is committed to making sure that any concerns are communicated to the owner, and they give you a daily report card so you know what went on with your dogs dayThe facility also has cameras, so you can watch you dog playing with the others while you're away, or at work

Response to kennel cough:
All dogs are
exposed to kennel cough when entering any
boarding or vet clinic. We do have signs up letting clients know that if
they see signs of kennel cough to please not bring their dogs to our
facility. In addition, we inform clients on our website that kennel cough
is a very contagious virus and their dogs may get sick.
When dogs are most contagious, they show no signs.
There is no way for us to know if a dog is carrying kennel cough unless they
are showing signs of kennel cough. If we
see any signs of kennel cough all dogs are sent home or quarantined. The
other issue with kennel cough is that a dog may not actually have kennel cough
but be a carrier of kennel cough. If
this is the case, they would never show signs of having the virus however they
can pass the virus on to other dogs. In
addition, we are the only boarding facility in the state that requires two
forms of Bordetella (the vaccine that helps protect against kennel cough).
Just like all vaccines, they are never 100%.
We require the injectable Bordetella vaccine annually as well as the intranasal
vaccine every months. Some vets
believe this is over kill however we feel that if there is anything we can to
lower the risk of disease, we should do it. We are the cleanest boarding
facility in Utah. We clean constantly to ensure we limit the spread of
all disease.
Being Assertive:
We deal with dogs every day at
Coddled Critters. Some have anxiety
issues, some don't. The worst thing that
you can do when dealing with an anxious dog is not be confident and incharge
when handling them. I took the dogs
leash and walked him back behind the front gate to ensure that other dogs
entering the facility were safe from the anxious dog. Unfortunately anxious dog are times more
likely to lash out at another dog or person.
Therefore to ensure the safety of other clients and staff, I had no
choice to get the dog behind the gate. If
the client felt that I was mistreating her animal in any way I don't understand
why she would have left him. She could
have taken him home or to another facility at any point. I believe she does not want to pay the bill
and is looking for ways to get her money back.
Bath Not Done:Our grooming staff does not get into the facility until 9:am. She picked her dog up at 8:am. I do not understand where the miscommunication came into place. I apologized for this on the phone. She was obviously not charged.Call back:
I called the client immediately when
I saw that she had a bad experience at Coddled Critters. I deal with complaints very seriously. Fortunately we don't get many. Unfortunately there is nothing I can do about
kennel cough except require all dogs be vaccinated, sanitize the facility as
much as possible and ensure proper
ventilation to reduce the spread of disease.
There is nothing else I can do.
The client does sign an owner agreement prior to leaving their dog at
our facility. This discusses the client's
financial responsibility for all expenses involved with keeping their dogs at
our facilityAs far as the hang up...I never did such a thing. I politely told her I apologize she was so unsatisfied with her experience