Community Corner

Updated: Dog Dies Following Incident at Potomac Yard PetSmart

German shepherd attacked two dachshunds on Dec. 27.

4:10 p.m. update — PetSmart spokesperson Michelle Friedman sent Patch this written statement regarding the Dec. 27 incident that occurred at the Potomac Yard store:

"The death of Reagan is a tragic loss. No words can express our deep sorrow and regret for this incident. Nothing is more important to PetSmart than the safety and wellbeing of pets, especially those that are placed in our care, and we want to do everything we can to prevent this from happening again. While PetSmart has strict policies and procedures to keep pets safe and offers all of its associates comprehensive training, accidents still do occur.

"Despite our associates’ efforts to prevent this incident, our own investigation has led us to determine that PetSmart policies and procedures were not followed. We take policy violations very seriously, and consequently, several of the associates at this location are no longer with PetSmart. We are also working to help the pet parent during this difficult time."

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One dachshund died and another was injured following a Dec. 27 incident involving a German shepherd at the at Potomac Yard. All three dogs were staying at PetSmart’s “pet hotel.”

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The owner of the dachshunds contacted Animal Control following the incident.

“The shepherd had somehow escaped its cage and attacked the other dogs,” said Joy Wilson, Alexandria’s Animal Control director. “All the dogs were being housed there because the owners were out of town.”

Wilson said one of the dachshunds had to be euthanized because of its injuries. The other dachshund received sutures and was placed in overnight vet care.

Wilson said the PetSmart employees were instructed to contact her office in the future if similar incidents occur. 

The German shepherd, whose owner lives in Washington, D.C., was quarantined for 10 days to show it was not infected with rabies.

“The sad part about it is that it’s not either owners’ fault,” Wilson said. “When we were dealing with the attacking dog’s owner, she was devastated her animal was put in position to kill another animal.”

PetSmart’s media relations office in Phoenix did not return Patch's request for comment on Friday.

Wilson said the German shepherd was not entered into Virginia’s dangerous dog registry because it resides in the District.


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