This story is a strong reminder to be vigilant of any change in your pet’s behavior!
A professional dog walker was caught on surveillance video doing something that has outraged animal lovers and has them calling for police action. In the video, the owner of Alone At Home Pet Care in Chicago stands quietly in an elevator with two dogs, a white dog and a beagle puppy named Chloe. Suddenly, he steps on the little dog’s paw and then kicks her less than a minute after! The poor beagle is seen cowering in the elevator throughout the incident.
Warning: the images of abuse in the video below may be disturbing to some viewers.
The video surfaced after the apartment building’s security guard noticed the beagle acting oddly before entering the building’s elevator. This prompted the guard to watch the live video feed from the surveillance camera in the elevator on a monitor stationed near the entrance desk.
“Our door staff was very alert and attentive and noticed [the dog’s behavior], which prompted us to follow [the dog walker] and watch him,” the property manager said.
The property manager, who wishes to remain anonymous, confirmed that her staff alerted police and that they spoke with the dog’s owner about the abuse. She also confronted the dog walker and told him he was no longer welcome to walk dogs on their property again.
The video found its way onto social media and soon the dog-walking service’s Yelp listing was filled with angry comments.
The business owner, Jon Stenholt responded by sending an email to customers writing: “I am a despicable individual who did a horrible thing to a defenseless animal. I deserve all that I am now receiving. I am ashamed of my actions…”. The email concluded with “effective immediately, Alone At Home Pet care is over.”
He has not returned calls from the media and his website has since been taken down.
A former customer of the business said that there were no indications that there was a problem with the dog walker. But customers alerted to the video were shocked by what they saw and feel their trust has been betrayed.
A report was filed with police and, a few days later, Stenholt was charged with one misdemeanor count of cruelty to animals, according to police.
Thank goodness the security guard noticed the dog’s behavior otherwise who knows if this man would have been caught!
Please share this story with your friends as a reminder for them to keep watch on their pets!
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