Walter was a healthy three year old spoodle when his owners dropped him off at an Auckland dog daycare. He never came home. A necropsy found he died from internal bleeding after his liver was ruptured by significant blunt force trauma.
Walter is not the only dog connected to concerns at this daycare. Former employees have come forward describing other dogs who suffered or died while in the business's care. Currently, dog daycares in New Zealand can open and operate with no licensing, no mandatory background checks, and almost no government oversight at all. This cannot continue.
Sign the petition to demand the Ministry for Primary Industries close the gap that let this happen and require real oversight for pet care businesses across New Zealand.
Walter's owners were originally told he had been hurt in a dog fight, but it soon became clear that Walter was abused. Former employees say the treatment of pets at this daycare went far beyond what any pet owner would expect when they hand over their dog for the day. A parent would never leave their child at a daycare with no inspections and no accountability. Dogs deserve the same basic protection.
Requiring pet care businesses to be licensed, inspected, and screened before they're allowed to operate would give families a way to know their dog is actually safe, and it would stop dangerous operators from simply opening their doors and taking in animals with no oversight at all.
Without some kind of system, the next dog dropped off at a daycare like this one has no protection whatsoever.
Walter deserved better than what happened to him. Sign the petition to help make sure the next dog dropped off at a daycare comes home safe.
