TUCSON, Ariz. (KVOA) – A pet retail store that has faced plenty of public backlash has now gone out of business.
The News 4 Tucson Investigators spent months investigating Pets at Park Place after several customers told us they spent thousands for dogs that ended up having several illnesses.
One of those customers was Cathleen Doolittle, who was happy to hear the store closed down. We showed you her ordeal in a News 4 Tucson Investigation last week.
“I’m happy I’m real excited about it, it’s going to make a lot less families go through what we went through,” Doolittle said.
Just a few weeks before that report we showed you the issues another woman, who requested not to be identified, faced after spending $2,500 for a dog and thousands more on vet bills.
“It’s more of a pattern versus a one off,” she said.
It remains unclear why the store closed, we asked Park Place Mall which wouldn’t tell us if it was their decision or the store’s decision. They told us to ask Pets at Park Place.
That’s exactly what we did, we reached out to Pets at Park Place but have heard nothing back.
The store had faced several inspections from the Pima Animal Care Center since it opened a couple years ago. During two inspections last year investigators discovered no dogs were vaccinated for rabies and threatened they could remove all dogs from the store.
In an email, PACC said it had nothing to do with the store’s closure and has no idea where the dogs in the store’s care ended up.
Rebecca Cotton has been a vocal animal advocate against Pets at Park Place, she was happy to hear of its closure.
“There’s a lot more to be done. It is a step in the right direction. The end goal is to get the State of Arizona to ban the sale of pets in stores,” she said.
Joining her in celebration is Gary Vella who runs the group SPEAK which has held regular protests outside of Pets at Park Place.
“I won’t get the smile off my face for weeks,” he said.
He said they had scheduled another protest Saturday at noon and now that may turn into a celebration rally.
It remains unclear what has become of the dogs in Pets at Park Place’s care.