'Pain and trauma': Pet owner, grooming salon in dispute over injury that led to removal of dog's eye
The owner of a dog which sustained an eye injury while boarding at Pawsome Singapore's outlet at Joo Chiat last November, resulting in the removal of the eye, has disputed the pet store's account of events.
Citing the absence of CCTV footage, owner Renne Chow, 55, told Stomp that she did not accept the store's explanation that Rudy, a pug, was injured by her other dog, a golden retriever named Rado.
It is the second incident in recent months involving Pawsome, which offers grooming, daycare, boarding and training services, after the death in October of a dog named Buddy, which was sent to Pawsome for grooming and allegedly left unattended.
Pawsome, founded in 2018, operates two outlets at Tanjong Katong Road and now Geylang Road after previously being located at Joo Chiat.
Owner questions Pawsome's explanation without CCTV footage
In a Facebook post on Nov 3 this year, Ms Chow shared the "pain and trauma" her family went through during the incident. While she acknowledged Pawsome's apology for the incident, she could not "accept the negligence".
In a separate post on Nov 4, Ms Chow said Pawsome told her that Rado had injured Rudy's eye, though no CCTV footage was provided as evidence.
She questioned how the two dogs could remain so close despite the alleged incident, sharing recent photos of Rudy and Rado snuggled together.
Ms Chow questioned why Pawsome was unable to provide footage of the incident.
She included screenshots of her conversations with Pawsome employees, who apologised and assured her that they were revisiting and reviewing details to "identify any gaps that may have contributed to this situation."
Dog's injury resulted in removal of eye
Speaking to Stomp, Ms Chow, 55, said she received a call from Pawsome on Nov 29, 2024, that Rudy had been sent to the vet as her right eyeball was hurt. Both Rudy and Rado were boarding with Pawsome for a few days while she was away.
Upon arriving at the vet, she was told that Rudy's cornea had been damaged, with her eyeball popped out. After seeking advice from two other vets, she decided to have the injured eye removed.
In photos included in her Facebook posts, Rudy's right eye appears to have a slice across it, even though Ms Chow was later told that Rado had bitten Rudy.
When she asked the vet about it, she was told that no scratch marks were visible.
Owner 'shocked' by Pawsome's explanation
That night, Ms Chow said handlers from Pawsome who took Rudy to the vet told her that Rudy was hurt by Rado.
"This shocked us," she said, explaining that the two dogs have been close for the past eight years, with Rado akin to Rudy's "personal body guard".
When she asked to see the CCTV footage of the incident, Pawsome informed her that the cameras on the second floor had been undergoing repairs for two weeks.
"This triggered us to think that the accident wasn't that simple," said Ms Chow.
She noted that both dogs had been with Pawsome for two to three years and regularly attended daycare, boarding and excursions.
Unconvinced by Pawsome's explanation, Ms Chow engaged a lawyer. During this process, Pawsome "insisted" they had done nothing wrong and offered to cover 10 per cent of the medical fees "out of goodwill".
She also noted that the two dogs remain "very close".
"How can (Rudy) not be scared of (Rado) if he was the culprit?" she asked.
Ms Chow also contacted the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS), which informed her that they have investigated the case and took "appropriate action against the facility for breaching the pet boarding license conditions."
Stomp has reached out to AVS for comment.
'Inaccurate and unfair to suggest negligence': Pawsome
In response to Stomp's queries, a Pawsome spokesperson maintained that Rado had caused Rudy's injury.
Both dogs had been boarding with them for over three years "without issue", and had been "fed together on multiple occasions, with photos and videos shared directly with the owner, who acknowledged and expressed satisfaction with our care".
"At no point was any instruction given to feed them separately," added the spokesperson.
When the incident occurred, Pawsome staff were present and "immediately intervened and provided assistance ... in line with our care procedures."
Pawsome has also refunded the owner's unused credits and extended a "goodwill payment" towards Rudy's medical expenses, "offered without admission of liability as a gesture of empathy and fairness."
It is "therefore inaccurate and unfair to suggest negligence or disregard on our part", added the spokesperson. "We have acted in good faith and in accordance with the information available to us at the time."
