ComplaintsforBeyond the Walk CT

• Initial Complaint

  07/18/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  In July, Beyond the walk ******* charged $3000 for 3 weeks of board and train. The owner, Sarah had looked at my list of training concerns and said no problem. It included the dog jumping on people, eating random objects outside, and walking on a leash without pulling. Again she said no problem. When the dog came back three weeks later almost nothing had changed. There was almost no progress. Plus, he had lost 10% of his bodyweight and looked like skin and bones. She never contacted me or the vet about the weight loss. In addition He seemed traumatized. The program had no transparency, never invited us to see the inside and sent one picture of Sarah holding my dog. She had sent a prior video of her home, but it showed very little of anything. No pictures of Training or anything else. I have since spent $700 at the vet to get his health back. I felt scammed.

  Business response

  07/18/2024

  Hello *****,
  

  We are sorry you feel this way. We’d like to start off by clarifying your complaint because you mentioned that in July you paid $3000 to us for the program. That was not the case, we had set up a payment plan and you made regular payments to us despite us having a prepayment policy, but we agreed to a payment plan and agreed on the set dates for payments. You made payments, consistently late, through June and only one in July. We were in regular contact and at any point you were able to contact us and express your concerns during the program, which you did not. 

  
  We had discussed with you prior to booking that the reason that we cannot do tours of the property were for liability purposes and privacy purposes of clients who had dogs who were currently working with us at our property. You had no problem with this and moved forward with booking the service. 

  
  You then contacted us two and half hours after Max had been picked up with concerns about his weight, training and the program as a whole. We immediately got on the phone with you and had a discussion. We went over how there is a period of decompression and to give him some time to settle in but to also follow the provided guide to see success. We also discussed how no concerning weight loss was noted while he was in our care and how some weight loss is not unusual after spending time with us doing a lot of activities as we do regular exercise activities and allow for proper socialization. We offered to compare photos as we do take photos at intake and discharge for our files and you did not take us up on that offer. You had noted that you offered him food and water right away and he drank water but did not eat. We discussed that he was fed per the instructions you provided so he was fed prior to pick up per the instructions. We also discussed that after the decompression period of 5-10 days that you could reach out to schedule a complimentary follow up to address the training concerns, this is also noted in the training guide. You mentioned that you would be taking him to the vet and we asked that you keep us posted.

  
  You then sent us a vet receipt without any descriptions of the services provided and a weight noted for 15.9lbs, which is well within the healthy range of his breed and size. You had also mentioned that the vet was alarmed at the weight. Radiographs were noted on the receipt and had mentioned that you would be following up with the vet to retake the radiographs as they were inconclusive. We responded to this message asking for vet notes so that we could see directly what the vet said was going on medically. We also requested older notes from before his stay with us as the notes we received did not notate Max’s weight for us to compare the difference. We also let you know that these records would be needed in order to potentially reimburse vet costs. You agreed to send us information after the vet visit in 2 days.

  
  It was at this point that you did not contact us for over 10 days. You then sent a text and said that Max was feeling better after vet treatment but did not send us any of the requested records. You mentioned the vet was shocked and said the dog looked like skin and bones but we have no record directly from the vet stating that and our photos do not show a dog who was skin and bones (which was taken only a few minutes before he was picked up). You noted that your training goal of jumping shows no improvement but walking does show some improvement. 

  
  We have been super responsive and attentive to your needs and concerns even after you brought false statements against us. You haven't provided the requested documentation nor have you accepted the proposed solution of pursuing vet reimbursement or the free services that were offered since you were dissatisfied with the services, that were completed based on your request, and care was given according to what you outlined Max needed for training, feeding and care.

• Initial Complaint

  03/15/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This ‘trainer’ took my 4.5 month cavapoo for dog training. My dog was completely traumatized by them (vomited in the car, crate, smelled of urine when returned) and stuck in a crate for almost 36 hours. The dog was shaking and upset when I got her back. She was supposed to be in their care for 2 weeks and I paid 900 upfront and the balance of 800 was due following week. I picked her up (they wouldn’t allow me to come get her at their facility, they hide their location) as they tried to tell me my dog had extreme behavior and would need more weeks there. This was a lie. I said I cannot afford more weeks so please let me get my dog. They tried to force me to sign paperwork saying she wouldn’t sue me for a dog bite (my dog has never bitten us in 2 months we had her and clearly was under duress by the trainer’s incompetence) . My dog was skin and bone, dehydrated and very weak when I got her. She made me meet at a parking lot to get my dog. She did no training and no work with my dog and refuses to refund me the money. She also traumatized my dog. I was advised to contact authorities. She also is suing someone for a ‘dog bite’. I believe she tried to extort me for more money, this is a scam happening with trainers. They get you in and then claim your dog needs longer time. My dog sat in a crate for 36 hours dehydrated and shaking and then she refused to give me my money back $900. This woman has a history of this behavior as per my research.

  Business response

  03/15/2024

  Hello,
  I am providing additional details to prove this complaint brought against my company is entirely invalid. 
  I personally had to file a police report on 3-10-2024, against ***** ****** *****, for stalking & harassment. The police report was taken by Officer ****** of ******* Police Department (###-###-####) the case number for this report is #********* 
  Additionally, she called our local animal control (******* Animal Control) to make additional false claims against me after I filed my police report against her the day before. They came to my residence, which is also our company location, on 3/11, did a full investigation & concluded all of her accusations to be false, with the exception of the bite. She had also reported to them at the time of these false allegations that her dog bit me, they came to inspect my injuries & confirmed it to be true that I was bitten by the dog. The responding officer was Animal Control Supervisor, ****** ******. His contact number is ###-###-####. I can provide the case number in the morning when they open, as both the complaint (proven false) & documented bite are on the same report. 
  Officer Sirico called her to inform her all of her allegations proven to be false. However, he did confirm with her the bite had occurred & was able to inspect my injuries proving them to be as she described them & her dog needed to go on a state required bite quarantine hold since it was not current on rabies, a legally required vaccine for dogs over the age of 12 weeks. *********** Health Department spoke with me on 3/12 & removed the dog from ***** ****** *****’s residence for a mandatory bite hold. They can be contacted at ###-###-#### to confirm this. 
  Per her review in which we reported on the account, she stated her dog did not bite me, which she clearly knew was not true as she voluntarily reported this to our local animal control. Additionally, she falsely reviewed that we made her meet in a dark location “cloak & dagger,” but this local was actually requested by her, even after she suggested meeting at our local police department, in which we complied to do, but she then proceeded to change locations last minute. (Please see attached screenshots for proof of this). 
  She additionally reported her dog “smelled of vomit” but also confirmed to us that her dog gets car sick & we reported this information back to her, in which she again confirmed this was ‘normal’ for her dog. (See attached screenshots for proof). 
  Additionally, she claimed the dog was skinny & she could feel the dogs chest bones. The dog was with us for 24 hours, it is literally impossible for a dog to lose that much weight in that time. Additionally, when she made these exact complaints to the animal control officer, she was requested to submit proof of this either via photos or via a weight check at her veterinarians office, both of which she was not able to provide for proof. 
  This “serious complaint,” resulting in the banning of our account is entirely false & part of an ongoing issue we are now working with an attorney on due to her continued threatening & harassing behaviors & false allegations to have a formal & legally withholding cease & desist in place against ***** ****** *****. 
  Please respond back to us as soon as possible. This drastically impacts our business as your platform helped facilitate lots of leads, which we have used with no issues since your platform launched, & this is a false report resulting in an unjust banning of our account. 
  Please let me know if you need any additional details, we are happy to provide any & all information needed to prove these false.

  Business response

  03/15/2024

  Additionally, she signed a contract acknowledging services to be non refundable. 
  

  please see attached file & review to our response before this as well for further information addressing all false complaints. 

  Business response

  03/19/2024

  Hello,
  I am providing additional details to prove this complaint brought against my company is entirely invalid. 
  I personally had to file a police report on 3-10-2024, against ***** ****** *****, for stalking & harassment. The police report was taken by Officer ****** of ******* Police Department (###-###-####) the case number for this report is #********* 
  Additionally, she called our local animal control (******* Animal Control) to make additional false claims against me after I filed my police report against her the day before. They came to my residence, which is also our company location, on 3/11, did a full investigation & concluded all of her accusations to be false, with the exception of the bite. She had also reported to them at the time of these false allegations that her dog bit me, they came to inspect my injuries & confirmed it to be true that I was bitten by the dog. The responding officer was Animal Control Supervisor, ****** ******. His contact number is ###-###-####. I can provide the case number in the morning when they open, as both the complaint (proven false) & documented bite are on the same report. 
  Officer Sirico called her to inform her all of her allegations proven to be false. However, he did confirm with her the bite had occurred & was able to inspect my injuries proving them to be as she described them & her dog needed to go on a state required bite quarantine hold since it was not current on rabies, a legally required vaccine for dogs over the age of 12 weeks. *********** Health Department spoke with me on 3/12 & removed the dog from ***** ****** *****’s residence for a mandatory bite hold. They can be contacted at ###-###-#### to confirm this. 
  Per her review in which we reported on the account, she stated her dog did not bite me, which she clearly knew was not true as she voluntarily reported this to our local animal control. Additionally, she falsely reviewed that we made her meet in a dark location “cloak & dagger,” but this local was actually requested by her, even after she suggested meeting at our local police department, in which we complied to do, but she then proceeded to change locations last minute. (Please see attached screenshots for proof of this). 
  She additionally reported her dog “smelled of vomit” but also confirmed to us that her dog gets car sick & we reported this information back to her, in which she again confirmed this was ‘normal’ for her dog. (See attached screenshots for proof). 
  Additionally, she claimed the dog was skinny & she could feel the dogs chest bones. The dog was with us for 24 hours, it is literally impossible for a dog to lose that much weight in that time. Additionally, when she made these exact complaints to the animal control officer, she was requested to submit proof of this either via photos or via a weight check at her veterinarians office, both of which she was not able to provide for proof. 
  This “serious complaint,” resulting in the banning of our account is entirely false & part of an ongoing issue we are now working with an attorney on due to her continued threatening & harassing behaviors & false allegations to have a formal & legally withholding cease & desist in place against ***** ****** *****. 
  Please respond back to us as soon as possible. This drastically impacts our business as your platform helped facilitate lots of leads, which we have used with no issues since your platform launched, & this is a false report resulting in an unjust banning of our account. 
  Please let me know if you need any additional details, we are happy to provide any & all information needed to prove these false.

   

  Additionally, she signed a contract acknowledging services to be non refundable. 

  see attached documents

  Customer response

  03/26/2024

  Hello,

   

  I do not wish to close the complaint. Apologies for late response but I am waiting on documents from animal control and ** police departments. There are other complaints regarding this business / person and I am waiting to receive those. 
  I am also working with other entities regarding licensing and laws in *** 
  

  I would like appropriate time to respond once I’ve received all this information. 
  Unfortunately this business has used means to intimidate me for not seeking a refund for services she did not render, has a past history of similar things, and has done nothing but threaten since I asked to get my dog. 
  

  Her claims are baseless, she was the last person to write in the text chain - merely about me getting my puppy back. 
  

  I was told I should have the information by end of next week so can you please hold?

  thanks 

   

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩