A Florida woman who purchased her golden retriever, aptly named Sunny, from a local Petland store is suing the mega pet store for allegedly misleading her.

Sunny’s owner purchased the pup for $3,500 and entered into a financing contract with Lending USA, a company that partners with Petland to offer loans to new pet owners. According to the lawsuit, Sunny’s owner would end up paying $26,655 for the dog over the period of the loan contract.

On top of the loan, Sunny’s owner also claims that, despite being assured Sunny was healthy and AKC-registered, Sunny was a sick puppy, diagnosed with hip dysplasia, a condition that would require surgeries and treatments adding up to $21,000. The legal complaint also alleges the puppy was not, as claimed, from one of the “top 5% breeders in the nation” but rather was from one of the puppy mills listed in the Humane Society’s 2019 Horrible Hundred.

In the lawsuit, Sunny’s owner sued Petland for misleading her, selling her a sick dog, and failing to abide by state laws that would require the store to pay for the puppy’s treatment. Sunny’s owner is seeking $60,734 in damages from Petland. 

According to news reports, multiple lawsuits throughout the country have been filed against Petland related to its sale of sick puppies acquired through puppy mills and the exorbitant costs incurred by the new owners for loans and veterinary costs. 

—Source: bloghumanesociety.org