A SCOTS couple has been left devastated after their beloved pooch died of heatstroke after being allegedly left in the boot of a car by a pet groomer – before being cremated without permission.
Adam Gardner Mclean, 30, and partner Gemma Allan, 29, had gone on holiday to Turkey earlier this month, leaving two-year-old French bulldog Pablo behind with local pet groomer Joan Barr.
The couple from Longbridge, West Lothian had their holiday high come crashing down though after receiving a text from Joan last Tuesday, informing them that Pablo had died suddenly.
Joan claimed that Pablo had allegedly been sick over the course of a few days and had found him dead after returning from a walk – before proceeding to hand his body over to a pet crematorium.
Adam explains that the pair handed Pablo over to Joan at her business in Whitburn, West Lothian before jetting off, believing her to be insured and registered.
However, upon receiving the tragic news that their pup had passed away, Joan claimed in the same text that she had made attempts to contact the couple earlier in the day but could not reach them.
Adam refutes this, arguing that he had been successfully calling family members earlier that very same day.
The devastated duo claim to have inquired further and soon discovered that Pablo had already been cremated in the early hours of that morning – without their permission.
The couple added that the crematorium, iCare Pet Crem, had allegedly been told by Joan that they wanted Pablo cremated, and had offered to remove him from the boot where he had died.
Adam claims that funeral director Alex Baxter – who has since apologised for the cremation – had said that Pablo was found in a stiff state and still wearing his harness.
Alex reportedly told Adam that this stiff state indicated the poor pooch had been dead for longer than the hour that Joan claimed when she arrived with him.
He also claimed that Pablo’s outstretched legs made it very difficult to get him in and out of the cage – indicating that he probably died in the boot.
Alex further alleged that Pablo’s legs were covered in blankets with no air space – indicating a struggle with heat exhaustion.
Joan, who was allegedly seen washing her car just 24 hours after the ordeal, is reported to have been an uninsured and unregistered dog groomer who had been reported to the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) multiple times.
However, despite the many alleged reports and witnessed mistreatment of her own dogs, the reports are thought to have been ignored.
Joan is also thought to have since removed the business from Yell.com, where she had allegedly received multiple bad reviews from previous owners.
The couple also claimed that a vet advised them that Pablo could have been put “on ice” to confirm his cause of death, as well as giving them their last moments with Pablo – which they believe Joan has “taken” from them.
They have now issued a warning to all pet owners, warning of the alleged legitimacy of Joan and her business.
Adam took to social media on Saturday to detail the entire tragic ordeal before adding his warning to online users.
He wrote: “I’m not one for publicly naming and shaming a person or a business, however since the SSPCA don’t seem to have this high on their priority list, I need to make sure that this person never grooms, boards or walks another dog ever again.
“We have spoken to a number of her neighbours to try and obtain Ring doorbell/camera footage, who have confirmed they believed that she has mistreated dogs in the past, leaving them in her car for extended periods of time.
“One neighbour confirmed that she had reported her to the SSPCA on four occasions.
“I truly believe that my poor boy was left in the boot of her car either overnight or in this blistering heat, especially after reading some of the reviews.”
He continued: “Whether it be for 10 minutes, an hour or overnight, it doesn’t make any difference. Temperatures have been upwards 20°+ over the last few weeks.
“This would also explain her insisting that she deliver him to iCare Pet Crem herself. I regret that I hadn’t looked into this sooner, she had our trust.
“Pablo was two-years-old, he had been to the vet twice, for his annual check ups. He had absolutely no health issues whatsoever.
“He was the most funny, happy, healthy, cuddly boy and I have an eight-year-old boy in absolute bits due to the incompetence of this woman.
“It also transpires that this business is unregistered, uninsured and has been trading illegally for years.
“Naive of me to assume that everything was by the book. Easy to overlook when she had been initially recommended by a friend and we had used her for so long.
“Please help me to make sure that this vile human is never allowed near another animal again!”
The post received over 1,600 likes and more than 680 comments from users left aghast at the entire story.
Jo Smith wrote: “Aw my God, how absolutely heartbreaking for you. Poor baby. This woman should be prosecuted for her outrageous neglect of your pet.”
Joan Ellison commented: “This is disgusting – hope you’re going to fight for justice for your poor furbaby. Thinking of you all.”
Kirsty Speirs said: “Can’t believe her business page is still on Facebook. The nerve of the woman – though she’s getting terrible reviews.”
Georgie Oakes wrote: “That’s horrific. Poor, poor babies. I’m so sorry and hope she gets what she deserves and more.”
Speaking to Adam today, he said: ““We got [Pablo] at 12-weeks-old, travelled to Wales to pick him up.
“He was a fantastic dog, a joy around the house. He was very playful – always had his mad hour and he loved sausage rolls.
“He had to have a snack size sausage roll with his dinner. He used to grunt when you were in the fridge, almost as if to ask for one.
“He used to sleep in our bed and after six months or so, realised that you had to put your head on a pillow when sleeping.
“He snored so bad, so he was right in between us, head on the pillow every night.
“We went on holiday on Friday 9 June, we found out [he had died] by text message at 7:30pm on Tuesday 20.
“[We] later discovered [Joan] has been trading illegally, not registered or has insurance. She told us that she had no insurance when we questioned her. She texted us herself.
“She told us that he had passed away, yes, however not the truth is how he passed and she didn’t try to contact us at all. All lies.
“He was cremated at 9:30am, she texted us at 7:30pm, telling iCare Pet Crematorium that she had our permission to do so.
“She then told us to stop picking up on things when we were trying to piece it together. iCare had to carefully remove him from a cage in her boot, with his lead and harness still on.
“They told us that as his legs were out stretched it would have been physically impossible to have placed him like that and that he had definitely passed in the cage in the boot.
“A few of her neighbours have contacted us to say that she has left dogs in her car for hours overnight.
“One neighbour claimed she had contacted SSPCA on four occasions. Apparently, she is well-known to them.”
A spokesperson for West Lothian Council said: “We have been made aware of an alleged incident regarding a dog which may have died whilst in the custody of an individual.
“We will be investigating the allegation. We are unable to comment further at this time.”
SSPCA has been contacted for comment.
Joan Barr and iCare Pet Crematorium have also been approached for comment on the story, but have yet to reply at the time of publication.
A spokesperson for SSPCA today, said: “The Scottish SPCA received a call regarding a dog that had died while in the care of an unregistered boarder while his owners were on holiday.
“We are looking into this case and have referred the matter to the local authority.”
