A bulldog’s owners were devastated to learn that it had passed away after being allegedly left in a glass conservatory by a dog sitter earning £28 per day during this week’s record-breaking heat wave.
Nikki and Glenn Morton, the owners of the bulldog Teddie, had left him with the sitter on Sunday, July 17.
The pair, who are from Caerphilly in South Wales, claimed they discovered the dog-boarder on the Rover website and believed the 21-month-old would be secure there.
But less than a day after leaving him with the caregiver, Mrs. Morton got a call informing her that her dog had passed away.
Mrs. Morton, 49, claimed her dog was kept in the boarder’s heated conservatory, prompting the police and the dog-sitting service to launch an investigation into the tragedy.
She remarked, “I am furious and utterly heartbroken because it was so avoidable.”
‘When we went there that day, the conservatory was sweltering. Outside, it was 27°C, but it was hotter inside.
Before they travelled to Jamaica for a two-week vacation later this year, the Mortons had scheduled Teddie to stay there for a couple of nights so he could become accustomed to it.
On Rover, a website that facilitates the purchase and sale of pet services including dog boarding, dog walking, and pet sitting, Mrs. Morton discovered the sitter in Barry, 20 miles from her house in Caerphilly.
I did a Google search, and Rover popped up, the woman claimed.
We found a sitter who seemed incredibly wonderful, had five-star reviews, and everyone was raving about her.
It seemed really legitimate.
She claimed she was shocked to hear that the dog sitter was also caring for five additional dogs.
Teddie was left in the house about 6 o’clock, but the sitter called her the following morning at 7:48 to inform her that the dog had passed away.
I questioned where he had been sleeping, and she responded, “Well, the conservatory,” according to Mrs. Morton.
“Why would you leave a puppy in a glass box outside in such bad weather?” I had to just put the phone down as I was sobbing.
The conservatory door was open when the Mortons arrived to collect her pet’s remains that morning.
She claimed: “My dog was dead on the floor and I had covered him with a quilted blanket.” He had nearly reached rigour mortis. The odour was terrible.
It is a blindless, all-glass conservatory. I’m clinging to the idea that he didn’t endure any pain in the conservatory.
“Both my home and my heart feel empty,” the speaker said. Everybody on our street knew who he was.
He was constantly bothered as he walked down the street.
He enjoyed chasing tennis balls around the garden. He cherished both life and people.
The cat is pacing the house in search of him because they used to be best friends. He had an enormous role in our lives. He still had at least another 10 years in him, and he was a baby.
The dog sitter does not possess a dog boarding licence, according to the municipal council’s licencing department.
The email from a Vale of Glamorgan representative stated: “The licencing department recommends that only approved dog boarders be employed.”
“At Rover, the majority of us are pet parents ourselves, and our hearts go out to Teddie’s family and everyone who loved him,” a Rover representative said.
We are devoted to helping Teddie’s owner get through this difficult period. Our trust and safety team is looking into the matter right now.
The sitter will no longer be able to provide additional pet care services through Rover because we have removed them from our platform.
“At Rover, the safety of pets and the welfare of our community come first.” We are proactively disseminating safety advice to members of our community to assist protect dogs during this unusual heatwave in the UK.
On Thursday, a spokesperson for South Wales Police stated: “We got a report regarding the death of a dog that occurred on Monday, July 18. There are ongoing inquiries.