ComplaintsforHeartland Pets

• Initial Complaint

  05/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This is copy/pasted from my Google review: UPDATE 5/5: I received a letter in the mail today explaining I am not allowed to set foot on Millcreek Mall property. I go to church right next to the mall, so I called to make sure it would be alright. Mall security said that's okay, but if I go near the mall I will be arrested. I spoke with Heartland Manager, Richard, on the phone about this, and he is in fact the one who filed the complaint, alleging I was trying to break in to their store (this is a complete fabrication.) This is what Heartland does to people who call them out on their horrible, horrible business practices. I never received an apology, by the way. Only attitude. UPDATE 4/20: Manager Richard told me Monday the check would be here in a day or two, that he would be sending it Priority Mail. But in actuality he sent it with regular postage, so I am still waiting for my money back. I cannot afford the gas to attend classes at Edinboro, today. DO NOT TRUST THIS STORE. They definitely still uses PUPPY MILLS. UPDATE 4/18: **** passed away from PARVO, contracted at Heartland. This is what Summit Pet Hospital helped me to understand. Heartland has not been helpful in getting the compensation I deserve. This makes the whole Mall look bad. ORIGINAL REVIEW 4/12: **** became my very first dog, at 39! Maddie helped me so much in finding my soul mate, and Jessie the assistant manager helps hire really caring and kind people. Do not worry too much about puppy mills here, they said they don't use them. They apparently CARE about their animals, and it shows.

  Business response

  05/16/2023

  ******* ******* purchased a Miniature Australian Shepherd from Heartland Pets on 4/5/23.  The puppy was in perfect health when it left the store.  Had always been eating and drinking fine as well full of high energy and playfulness...having been seen by our vets from Erie Animal Hospital with no adverse notes.  

  On the morning of 4/17/23, our employee was stopped at the entrance of the store by the mall security guard to inform her that she had to stop a man, later identified as ******* *******, from disrupting the peace slightly down the hall from the pet store.  Mr. ******* was yelling loudly and ranting to any passersby that Heartland Pets killed his dog.  He was beligerent with the security guard and was asked to leave.  When he refused, he was escorted out by security and a mall walker who was also an Erie detective.   The security guard as well as Heartland Pets employees were fearful for their safety from Mr. ******* after these outbursts.  The mall security guard called Millcreek Police at this time. 

    Millcreek Police arrived and spoke to Mr. ******* via phone.  They told him he was not allowed inside the mall at this time nor near Heartland Pets.  Mr. *******' ban from the Millcreek Mall was then initiated by the Mall itself, NOT Heartland Pets.

  Mr. ******* also has concern regarding where Heartland Pets source their puppies.  Never once did he question a manager about his concern.  Heartland Pets only uses breeders who are state and Federally licensed as is required by law.

  As to his concerns regarding the death of his puppy:  A Heartland employee contacted Summit Pet Hospital and spoke to a tech there regarding Mr. ******* situation.  She explained that the puppy was not brought in for medical attention until the puppy had not been eating for FIVE days.  No one should allow a puppy to go without eating for five days before seeking medical advise.  As it turns out, Mr. ******* claims he was in the hospital at this time and the puppy was under the nominal care of a neighbor who may or may not have looked after the puppy.   The tech stated that the puppy would have been fine with proper care.  As for the Parvo diagnosis, the test administered is standard in this case and revealed a faint positive.  According to the tech, it is not possible that if indeed it was a positive result, the puppy contracted Parvo from Heartland Pets due to the fact that the gestation is 5-7days.  Mr. ******* already had the puppy in his possession for nine days prior to a first vet visit.

  Mr. ******* claims he was not reimbursed.  In fact, the owner of Heartland Pets reimbursed Mr. ******* for his vet bill in the amount of $395.60 IN PERSON.  And in fact Mr. ******* only paid Summit Pet hospital $300.00 of the $395.60 owed.  So Mr. ******* is now $95.60 to his benefit which hopefully makes it's way to Summit Pet Hospital.  As for the refund of the puppy...Heartland Pets is not required under warranty to refund Mr. ******* since proper vet care was not administered in a timely manner... but Heartland Pets refunded anyway.  Mr. ******* finance contract was cancelled (as to NOT affect his credit in any way) and his down payment was refunded by company check.  Upon checking with Heartland Pets' bank, both checks were cashed by Mr. ******* within days of receiving.  

   

  Customer response

  05/17/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  “******* ******* purchased a Miniature Australian Shepherd from Heartland Pets on 4/5/23. The 
  puppy was in perfect health when it left the store. Had always been eating and drinking fine as well 
  full of high energy and playfulness...having been seen by our vets from Erie Animal Hospital with no 
  adverse notes.”
  Heartland did not provide a record of any vet visits, aside from the Rabies Vaccination 
  Certificate, which was performed March 1st, 2023.

  
  “On the morning of 4/17/23, our employee was stopped at the entrance of the store by the mall 
  security guard to inform her that she had to stop a man, later identified as ******* *******, from 
  disrupting the peace slightly down the hall from the pet store. Mr. ******* was yelling loudly and 
  ranting to any passersby that Heartland Pets killed his dog. He was beligerent with the security 
  guard and was asked to leave. When he refused, he was escorted out by security and a mall walker 
  who was also an Erie detective. The security guard as well as Heartland Pets employees were 
  fearful for their safety from Mr. ******* after these outbursts. The mall security guard called 
  Millcreek Police at this time. “
  I was not yelling, nor ranting. This is hearsay. I did inform a few fellow mallgoers that 
  “Heartland had sold me a dead dog.” Nothing about killing. I left immediately without question 
  when asked, and was certainly not belligerent. I never refused leaving. 

  
  “Millcreek Police arrived and spoke to Mr. ******* via phone. They told him he was not allowed 
  inside the mall at this time nor near Heartland Pets. Mr. *******' ban from the Millcreek Mall was 
  then initiated by the Mall itself, NOT Heartland Pets.”
  The ban was initiated by Heartland and the Millcreek Mall, as per my conversation with the 
  security company, once I received a letter in the mall explaining the ban.

  
  “Mr. ******* also has concern regarding where Heartland Pets source their puppies. Never once 
  did he question a manager about his concern. Heartland Pets only uses breeders who are state and 
  Federally licensed as is required by law.”
  I specifically asked if they used puppy mills. They denied this. However, after speaking with 
  several other prior customers, it is known throughout the community that they do, in fact, use 
  puppy mills.

  
  “As to his concerns regarding the death of his puppy: A Heartland employee contacted Summit Pet 
  Hospital and spoke to a tech there regarding Mr. ******* situation. She explained that the puppy 
  was not brought in for medical attention until the puppy had not been eating for FIVE days. No one 
  should allow a puppy to go without eating for five days before seeking medical advise. As it turns 
  out, Mr. ******* claims he was in the hospital at this time and the puppy was under the nominal 
  care of a neighbor who may or may not have looked after the puppy. The tech stated that the 
  puppy would have been fine with proper care. As for the Parvo diagnosis, the test administered is 
  standard in this case and revealed a faint positive. According to the tech, it is not possible that if 
  indeed it was a positive result, the puppy contracted Parvo from Heartland Pets due to the fact that 
  the gestation is 5-7days. Mr. ******* already had the puppy in his possession for nine days prior 
  to a first vet visit.”
  The dog died of Parvo, contracted during his stay in the kennels of Heartland. This is 
  according to a vet.

  
  “Mr. ******* claims he was not reimbursed. In fact, the owner of Heartland Pets reimbursed Mr. 
  ******* for his vet bill in the amount of $395.60 IN PERSON. And in fact Mr. ******* only paid 
  Summit Pet hospital $300.00 of the $395.60 owed. So Mr. ******* is now $95.60 to his benefit 
  which hopefully makes it's way to Summit Pet Hospital. As for the refund of the puppy...Heartland 
  Pets is not required under warranty to refund Mr. ******* since proper vet care was not 
  administered in a timely manner... but Heartland Pets refunded anyway. Mr. ******* finance 
  contract was cancelled (as to NOT affect his credit in any way) and his down payment was refunded 
  by company check. Upon checking with Heartland Pets' bank, both checks were cashed by Mr. 
  ******* within days of receiving.”
  I never claimed I was not reimbursed. I claimed it took them too long and was not 
  satisfactory, this is still the case.

  
  Regards,
  
  ******* *******

• Initial Complaint

  07/27/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was visiting Heartland Pets on Wednesday, July 27th at 4:45-5:30 pm and would like to report the animal cruelty taking place in the business. I am a guinea pig and dog owner and am appalled by the living conditions of these animals. Guinea pigs require western Timothy hay as about 90% of their diet. These guinea pigs and other small animals did not have any hay whatsoever as well as hiding places as they are prey animals and rely on the ability to hide. I asked an employee to put hideouts in and they said they were not allowed to. I told the store manager the guinea pigs needed hay and was ignored. I called and again advocated for the guinea pigs. I emailed the store, wrote reviews and even reached out to them on Facebook. They also have puppies caged in very small crates on grated floors. Almost all of them look malnourished. They have no room to exercise and hardly any food and water. Same thing with the guinea pigs. These animals lack the proper necessities for their quality of life. It is animal cruelty carried out by this business and it needs to stop. A picture of the guinea pig enclosure and dog kennel are attached below.

  Business response

  07/31/2022

  The guinea pigs at Heartland Pets are well cared for.  Every one of the enclosures is cleaned daily, fresh food and water is given daily as well.  Hay is given every morning for consumption.  If, by 4:30-5:00 on that Wednesday, hay was not seen in their cages it is because they already ate their daily intake.  As for the puppies, all enclosures are acceptable by USDA federal standards as well as the state of PA standards.  Puppies are fed twice daily and once they eat, bowls are removed to be sanitized and dried for next feeding.  Water bottles are accessible to puppies 24 hours a day.  Puppies are exercised daily as well.  Walks can be down outside as well as customers visiting and playing with puppies in playrooms any time the store is open.  

   

  Thank you,

  Heartland Pets

• Initial Complaint

  04/08/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unresolved

  More info

  We brought home 4 month old wired-hair dachshunds on 3/5 at & had them home in our care for less than 24 hrs. ******, the female, began vomiting repeatedly Sunday 3/6 and her condition steadily decreased that evening, prompting an emergency vet visit to the Northwest PA pet center. She was tested for Parvo, which came back negative, her & her brother ****** were both examined. *At this point we had thought they might have gotten into some cat food and it was maybe causing a simple upset stomach since we couldn’t possibly think of anything that might have caused this within the 18 hours that we owned them; this was not the case!* After being told they seemed okay & we should just hold off food and treat with an anti-nausea medicine (Cerenia), ****** got worse refusing to eat and becoming lethargic. On 3/7 we took her to see a vet at the Jamestown Vet Hospital where they said her stomach seemed full despite not eating for almost 2 days. She was given Reglan with fluids and a Cerenia injection. She proceeded to get even worse, not eating now for 3 days, vomiting blood and falling unconscious the following night. Late 3/8 she was seen at Orchard Park Vet Center where they discovered she had inflammation of her stomach lining, was severely anemic due to an intestinal bleed somewhere, & needed a blood transfusion. They tried performing parasite testing, but due to not eating for 3 days she had no fecal sample to give. She was then admitted to their hospital where they treated her for general parasitism. ****** finally began to eat & was eventually discharged Thursday evening. Her brother and her were taken back to the Jamestown Vet Hospital on 3/17, where they got a fecal sample for parasite testing from both of them. They found that her blood cell count was still low, but slightly higher than before. On 3/18 the parasite test results came back positive for Giardia in ******, ****** was already treated for these a week prior during her hospital stay Cont. in photos

  Business response

  04/28/2022

  ******* ******* PURCHASED 2 LONG HAIRED DACHSHUNDS FROM HEARTLAND PETS ON 3/5/22. THE FEMALE DACHSHUND (******) WAS THE PUPPY THAT WAS HAVING THE DIFFICULTY'S 
  TREATMENT STARTED 3/7/22 AT NORTHWEST PET EMERGENCY CENTER THEIR DIAGNOSIS WAS GASTROENTERITIS SECONDARY TO DIETARY INDISCRETION (THE PUPPY ATE SOMETHING THAT SHE WAS NOT SUPPOSED TO) 

  
  ****** TESTED NEGATIVE FOR PARASITES AT ORCHARD PARK VETERINARY CENTER 
  
  ****** HAS NEVER TESTED POSITIVE ON ANY FECAL TESTS SUBMITTED TO HEARTLAND PETS. 

  
  WE WERE HOPING FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION FROM ALL THREE OF THE VETERINARIAN PRACTICES WHERE ****** RECEIVED CARE, HOPING SOMEONE HAS A MORE INFORMATION OF WHAT THE PUPPY'S UNDERLYING ISSUES ARE. PARTICULARLY FROM JAMESTOWN VETERINARY HOSPITAL AND NORTHWEST PET EMERGENCY HOSPITAL. 

  
  ONCE PARASITES ARE DISCOUNTED FROM THE POSSIBLE CAUSES OF ******S ISSUES, WHATS LEFT ARE EATING SOMETHING THAT THE PUPPY SHOULDN'T OR TRAUMA. 

  
  HEARTLAND PETS CERTAINLY WANTS TO BE FAIR TO MS. *******, BUT ITS NOT CLEAR AT ALL IF THE ISSUE IS COVERED BY THE WARRANTY. 

  
  WE ASKED FOR A VETERINARIANS CERTIFICATION OF ILLNESS, DIAGNOSIS AND VETERINARIAN NOTES FROM JAMESTOWN VETERINARIAN HOSPITAL FROM MS ******* BACK ON MARCH 16'H, BUT HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANYTHING FROM HER YET. SHE WAS ALSO GIVEN A SIGNED COPY OF THE WRITTEN PENNSYLVANIA STATUTE THAT EXPLAINS THAT WE NEED A WRITTEN COPY OF VETERINARIANS CERTIFICATION OF ILLNESS. 

  
  ALSO THE NOTES FROM NORTHWEST PA PET EMERGENCY CENTER FROM 3/7/22 WOULD BE VERY CONSTRUCTIVE, AS WELL AS A VETERINARNIANS CERTIFICATION OF ILLNESS. 
  

  
  THE CERTICATION OF ILLNESS REQUIREMENTS FROM THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA LAW ARE ENCLOSED. 

  
  HEARTLAND PETS ERIE PENNSYLVANIA 

   

   

  
  this section. If, however, the purchaser's veterinarian determines the dog's illness is incurable, only the options in causes (1) and (2) of this subsection shall apply. 
  For the purposes of this subsection, veterinary findings of intestinal and external parasites shall not be grounds for declaring the dog unfit for purchase unless the dog is clinically ill or dies due to that condition. A dog shall not be found unfit for purchase on account of injury sustained or illness most likely contracted subsequent to the date of sale. If, within thirty days after the date of purchase, a dog purchased from a seller is certified through physical examination, diagnostic tests or necropsy by a veterinarian that the dog has or died from a defect which is congenital or hereditary and which adversely affects or affected the health of the animal, the purchaser may exercise one of the options as provided in clauses (1), (2) and (3) of this subsection. Remedies available under clauses (1), (2) and (3) of this subsection shall also apply to replacement dogs. 
  (C) 
  A veterinarian's certification of illness, congenital or hereditary defects or death shall be necessary for a refund or replacement or to receive reimbursement for veterinary costs if the dog is retained by the purchaser and treated for illness or congenital or hereditary defect as provided in this section. The veterinarian's certification shall be supplied at the purchaser's expense. The veterinarian's certification shall state the following information: 
  The purchaser's name and address. 
  (1) (2) 
  The date the dog was examined. The breed and age of the dog. 
  (i) That the veterinarian examined the dog. 
  (i) That the dog has or had an illness as described in subsection (b) of this section or a defect as described in subsection (b) of this section which renders it unfit for purchase or which resulted in its death, 
  (iii) The precise findings of the examination, diagnostic tests or necropsy. 
  The treatment recommended, if any, and an estimate or the actual cost of the treatment should the purchaser choose to retain the dog and seek reimbursement for veterinary fees to cure or attempt to cure the dog. 
  The veterinarian's name, address, telephone number and signature. 
  Within two business days of a veterinary examination which certifies illness, defect or death, the purchaser shall notify the seller of the name, address and telephone number of the examining veterinarian. Failure to notify the seller or to carry out the recommended treatment prescribed by the examining veterinarian who made the initial diagnosis until a remedy as provided for in subsection (b) of this section is agreed upon shall result in the purchaser's forfeiture of rights under this section. Subsection (b) of this section shall not · apply where a seller who has provided a health certificate issued by a veterinarian discloses in writing at the time of sale the health problem for which the buyer later seeks 
  

  
  

  Customer response

  04/28/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  
  I HAVE provided further documentation including ALL of what we have been given by these 3 separate vets. Richard’s bulls**t claim that they have not heard from me since March 16th is FALSE and I have attached the screenshots of my 2 additional attempts for some answers since then, considering he can’t answer his email and fails to provide any help when we call the store. 

  
  

  I’m also well aware of the clause we signed stating what is covered and how much we are obligated to receive for reimbursement; it would be the $2,500 we paid for her considering the fact that her vet bills have now amounted to $4,000. I also find it pathetic that they fail to acknowledge that they BOTH tested positive for intestinal parasites and needed treatment, whereas the female almost died via internal bleeding after no obstructions or toxins were found in her blood work. They HAVE all of this info and continue to d**k us around. I will be sending certified letters of all the documentation THEY ALREADY HAVE to further my point and they should be contacting the vets for the requested info, as we told them prior.
  
  
  Regards,
  
  ******* *******

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