Fur Family Pet Services

Review: My wife and I engaged Claire F[redacted], owner/operator of Fur Family Pet Services, to provide in-home care for our dog, [redacted], while on vacation Aug. 2-9, 2014. We provided detailed verbal and written instructions about his care including habits, behavior, medications, feeding, walking, etc.Specifically, we explained that [redacted] is very food driven and extra care was required to ensure the refrigerator and his food cabinet were securely closed. She assured us she would have no problem following these directions.While under Ms. F[redacted]'s care, [redacted] accessed and ate a whole fried chicken, which she had brought into the house and put into the fridge. The fatty skin and bones caused him to become ill, making a mess in several places in our house. Per our instructions, Ms. F[redacted] took him to our vet where he was treated for pancreatitis. During the next two days while we were still away, his condition deteriorated and he was to be transferred to an animal hospital for intensive care. Despite still being under contract to care for [redacted], we were unable to reach Ms. F[redacted] at this critical juncture. We had to enlist family friends to take [redacted] to the animal hospital.[redacted]'s health continued to decline. Corey and I eventually decided to euthanize rather than allow him to suffer. Before going forward, we contacted Ms. F[redacted] to ask what medical costs her insurance would cover - she had advertised on her website that she was licensed and insured. In that conversation, she said her insurance had lapsed. She became very defensive. She suggested someone broke into our home and opened the refrigerator and denied any responsibility for [redacted]'s illness/death. We believe Ms. F[redacted] was negligent in allowing [redacted] to access the fried chicken. Furthermore, while she had cleaned-up [redacted]'s messes, we still had to engage a cleaning service and carpet cleaners to remove stains and sanitize the house. She offered no apology and despite several texts did not return our key forcing us to change the locks.Desired Settlement: Ms. F[redacted]'s failure to respond appropriately regarding this situation has been appalling. We would like a refund of her fee ($520); reimbursement of [redacted]'s medical expenses ($4761.68), fees associated with cremation ($274), cleaning costs ($518) and cost of the new front door lock ($38).However, we would consider this matter settled for a refund of her fee, an admission of negligence and an apology.