Is Kennesaw Pet Store Selling Sick Pups?

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A pet store in Kennesaw is facing backlash from customers who say the dogs they purchased there were ill at the time that they were bought.

The Petland on George Busbee Parkway is accused of selling dogs with conditions such as pneumonia, kennel cough, and distemper. Frustrated owners told FOX 5 Atlanta that they own dogs that are rapidly shedding hair, or are in constant fear of coming home to find that their sick dog has died.

Members of the Facebook group “Shut down Petland in Kennesaw, Ga” claim that the store buys its animals from puppy mills and disreputable breeders; one Facebook commenter who said she bought a deathly ill rabbit from the store claims a Petland employee told her they got their rabbits from a breeder who she later learned was shut down by PETA for “gruesome animal treatment.”

“My dog was sick and they failed to inform me why she was sick and the Medicine they gave was old,” another commenter wrote.

Protesters gathered outside the store on Saturday demanding the closure of the store and full disclosure of the means through which the store acquires its puppies and other animals. Future protests are planned.

The owner of the store told FOX 5 that over the years only a very small portion of the 20,000 animals they sold ever became ill. The owner added that the store will pay vet bills if customers use their preferred veterinarian, and says that they are the only pet selling operation that is regulated by the state and federal government.