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An Olathe, Kansas family is devastated, desperate for answers and hoping for policy changes after their beloved dog died during what should have been a fun day at doggy daycare.
A Kansas family researched dozens of doggy daycare facilities to find the perfect place for Douglas, their 70-pound Goldendoodle and beloved member of the family to spend his time while they were at work. Eventually, the chose Fetchers Play and Stay in Olathe. That decision would ultimately haunt the family.
They dropped him off at doggy daycare as they’d done many times before. But this time, when they returned to pick up Douglas, he was nowhere to be found.
Staff searched the premises and finally located the beloved family dog. He was beneath an overturned pool, dead.
“They couldn’t find him,” the husband said. “They looked all over for him. Someone decided to lift up the pool and when they lifted up the pool, unfortunately, he was underneath of it dead. He laid there undetected for four to four and a half hours.”
For more than 4 hours, Douglas was trapped under the pool while other dogs piled on top and outside temperatures soared over 100 degrees. And not one employee realized he was missing.
The family are sharing their story to raise awareness and to encourage a change to policies and regulations so a dog cannot go unaccounted for at a facility.
“There should be a dog checklist, head count during shift change where every dog is laid eyes on and accounted for,” the wife said. “There should be a certain number of dogs per worker that can be safely monitored.”
Fetchers Play and Stay told KCTV they were devastated by the loss, take full responsibility, and are working with staff to make sure something like this never happens again.
