Leonard and Naudia Sztym are in shock. They say two of their three dogs were killed by another dog last Friday at a Red Deer kennel.
The Sztyms say they first visited Dark Horses Home Watch and Pet Care months ago, inquiring whether the privately owned facility could accommodate smaller breeds.
Naudia said there were many larger dogs there at the time, but the owner, Dale Layton, showed her a separated area where smaller animals are kept.
“She assured us that they were going to be separate and if I thought that she was going to put these dogs together, I would never ever have taken them there,” Naudia said.
They dropped the dogs off at the kennel on Wednesday, Nov. 2. On the couple’s way home from the Banff area, Naudia said she received a phone call from Layton.
“She said: ‘When you get here we have to talk,’” Naudia said. “Basically what happened – she said they were all getting along well… She opened up the areas so the dogs had more room to run around. Then someone came to the front door and she went out to see who it was.”
“When she came back to the dogs, Jasper was dead and Casey was barely alive.”
Naudia said Layton took Casey, a six-year-old Biewer, to a nearby emergency animal clinic, but vets were unable to save the pet.
The couple had Jasper, a five-year-old Pomeranian, since he was a puppy and Casey since she was two.
Their third dog, Willow, wasn’t hurt. Naudia called it a miracle.
“Willow does not like big dogs. She will bark and charge at big dogs – that’s why we specifically asked where they were going to keep little dogs,” Naudia said.
“She’s kind of walking around like she’s lost.”
Naudia said Layton was very apologetic, but wasn’t sure she understood the gravity of her family’s loss.
“I wish I felt like she really cared but I haven’t gotten that from her…I didn’t pay for the vet bill or the boarding fees. We went straight home to bury our dogs.”
The Alberta SPCA is investigating the incident.
“At this point it’s the early stages,” spokesperson Roland Lines said. “I’m not sure if we’re going to find anything actionable under the Animal Protection Act.”
He suggested the situation may be better handled by a civil or criminal claim.
Lines said any decision about whether the dog that allegedly killed the Sztyms’ two animals should be put down would have to come from RCMP and would require court involvement.
Layton released the following statement Thursday:
“I would like to begin with my deepest sympathies and condolences to the Sztyms. This is a great tragedy and loss that has occurred.
“At Dark Horses, we strive to treat each dog as we would our own. We are all deeply devastated by this incident. We are investigating, and our policies and procedures are under review to help prevent this from occurring again.
“I don’t want to get into a he said/she said argument, but I believe the couple misunderstood me with small dog/ large dog interaction. We will separate them if any dogs (big or small) are being anxious/nervous from the energy of dogs around them. We then divide dogs according to energy levels. I explained this to them, but it sounds like they either don’t recall or understood what I said. Moving forward, small dogs will not be allowed loose with larger dogs unless the client specifies this is what they would like as we do have clients that their small dogs prefer to play with the larger dogs.”
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