Largo store cited after puppy dies following lack of proper vet care: Animal Services

LARGO, Fla. - A puppy store in Largo is facing a citation after Pinellas County Animal Services said it didn’t get a puppy proper vet care before the dog died.

The puppy died the day after a customer said she sounded the alarm and begged employees at Sunshine Puppies to take the dog to the emergency vet. She then called Animal Services.

Brittney Adams hoped a visit to the store on Ulmerton Road last Wednesday would cheer her up after a family friend’s funeral.

"It was quite the opposite," Adams said.

She said what she saw made her heart sink.

"It started to use the crate wall to stable, like, stabilize itself and try to walk over to me, and then when it did, it plopped down really heavy," she said, describing a puppy she saw almost right after she walked into the store.

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Adams said the puppy looked extremely tired and was having trouble breathing. Adams said she told store employees, who moved the puppy from its cage to the playpen and tried to give it food and water. Adams said it didn’t help.

"It did the exact same thing that it was doing in its cage. It was using the walls to support itself, to stand up and to walk around, and the biggest cause for concern for me was when the puppy would get to the corner of the play area, it would hit its head into the wall," Adams said.

She started recording videos of the puppy. Adams later posted the videos to social media after she said she repeatedly reached out to the store to hear about the dog’s condition and didn’t hear back.

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Adams said she offered to pay for the puppy’s medical care if the employees let her take it to a nearby emergency vet. She said she also offered to drive the employees with the puppy to the emergency vet. According to Adams, they initially told her that the store’s vet was on the way.

She said after the puppy took a pretty hard fall, the employees agreed that the dog needed to go to an emergency vet, and they closed the store. Adams called Pinellas County Animal Services’ after hours animal welfare line from the store’s parking lot. The next day, an animal control officer went to investigate.

Animal Services said the store’s owner told the officer that the puppy had gone to the vet and they were waiting for test results. Animal Services requested a copy of the veterinary paperwork. They followed up Monday and were told the puppy had died.

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"When it's an animal that you directly have contact with and that you tried everything that you could within the confines of the law, to hear that it had passed away, it's devastating," Adams said.

Animal Services said the store’s owner never provided the paperwork, and Tuesday, it issued him a $148 citation for neglect and failure to provide proper veterinary care.

Pinellas County Animal Services said it reviews all complaints it receives. It said it also investigated reports of urine and feces in the puppies’ cages at Sunshine Puppies and found the store was in compliance.

FOX 13 called and emailed Sunshine Puppies, and went to the store for a comment. Employees said the owner would be reaching out. As of 7 p.m. Wednesday, FOX 13 had not heard back.

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