Top Notch Dog Training

Review: Entrusted Top Notch with care of my dog only to pick up a sick dog that required additional vet fees.

I boarded my dog with Top Notch because I had to go out of town. My dog was boarded for 10 days - March 15-24th. He was in perfect health with all shots up-to-date.

I picked him up and noticed a Kennel cough flyer on the counter that was not there when I dropped him off. I asked them about it and they just said that it was their protocol if a dog gets kennel cough.

As soon as I get my dog home, he starts getting sick. I took him to the vet the next morning and he has kennel cough.

I paid $270 for boarding and $150 to the vet for an exam and medicine. The vet confirmed it was kennel cough.

I called Top Notch and they refused to refund or pay for the vet fee.

Desired Settlement: Boarding fee and Vet Fee for my dog getting sick at their facility.

Business

Response:

Business' Initial Response

Canine Cough is caused by an airborne virus, and is impossible to avoid. Just as children often contract colds by being exposed at school or camp, dogs often contract Canine Cough by being exposed at day care, boarding, or dog park facility: any environment where other dogs can be found. Top Notch Kennels has a very strict vaccine policy as well as cleaning/sanitizing procedures, in order to do all we can to alleviate the occurrence of the virus. We have information posted on our web-site at all times to educate clients. As the customer stated, we also post notices if there is any cough outbreak in our area. It is impossible to guarantee that no dog will ever catch a cold, and as canine cough is a virus, no antibiotic can "cure" the symptoms. The cold runs its course naturally, just as in humans. While we strive in every way to keep all dogs in our care healthy, Top Notch policy states that we do not cover any costs if a client chooses to incur a bill at their vet.

Consumer's Final Response

(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)

There was no notice posted when I dropped my dog off. It was suddenly there when I picked him up.

I should have been contacted as soon as any dog at their facility had canine cough so I could remove my dog immediately to prevent exposure. I received no such phone call and was not informed.

I only discovered that dogs had canine cough when I picked up my dog and started asking questions because the notice was "suddenly" there. No one mentioned that they had dogs with canine cough currently there.

Regardless, I did not spend a fortune leaving my dog in their care only to pick up a very sick dog.

For customer satisfaction alone, they should be willing to offer some type of resolution.

Prior to this incident, I boarded my dog a few times there and paid them a lot of money.

My dog has never been sick and is current on all his shots. It's not reasonable to expect that an owner would not take him to the vet if this was the first time he was ever sick.

Review: We dropped our dog off at 3:00 on Sat. and picked her up at 2 the next day, so she was there less than 24 hours. The facility has self-imposed limited hours from 2-6 on Sundays so you have no option to pick them up earlier even if you wanted to. Apparently, they penalize their customers for their reduced hours, because we were charged for 2 days/nights instead of one. No one told me this was the case when I made the reservation or when we checked our dog in. I suggested they have earlier hours that day so as not to penalize the customer - this is a total scam that they have probably been getting away with for years, and my husband and I were very upset about it.Desired Settlement: We want a refund of the $30 that we feel we were overcharged (i.e. the cost of one additional night for which our dog did not stay there).However, additionally, we feel this general policy the business has is a scam and they are committing fraud on their customers. We would like their policy to change (or their hours) so their customers are not penalized for something the company imposes.