Griswalds' Story, Part 2 And "A Close Encounter of the Worst Kind!"

Today was Griswalds'  2nd acupuncture appointment and he did great! Dr. Falk & her Vet Tech, Vailene, sat on the floor with him and placed the acupuncture needles at the points where they'd be most effective.Then Dr. Falk heated the needles with a laser. In addition to treating Griswald with acupuncture, Dr. Falk added the final ingredients  to the recipe for Griswalds new diet.The goal is to increase Griswalds' lifespan. Dr. Roger Clemmons, Griswalds' Neurologist at the Veterinary School of Medicine at the  University of Florida in Gainesville, estimates Griswald might only live to be about 2 years old. Griswald will be 2 in March.                                                                                                                                                             On my way home from the  vet's,  I stopped at The Atlantic Doggery on East Atlantic Boulevard in Pompano Beach.  I planned to buy a few chew toys and to ask the owner if I could came back sometime & take a few pictures to put on my blog. Also, I wanted to ask him if he sells any of the organic meats that I need for Griswalds' new diet. I like this pet shop because it's small & they don't sell puppies. When I walked into the store, there was a woman on the floor unpacking a big bag of dog toys and I noticed that the displays and racks  had been rearranged since my last visit. She looked at me & Griswald & said," I know you". I wouldn't have recognized her but I knew the voice right away. Her name is Debbie and she was the puppy specialist at Gigi & Lucas Pet Boutique when I bought Griswald. Buying Griswald from  Debbie & Elizabeth was one of the most negative experiences I've ever had. Debbie called  my Vet  a "quack" & accused me of fabricating Griswalds  health problems. She lied to me when she said Giswald wasn't from a puppy mill. The first time I saw Debbie at Gigi & Lucas' I thought she was a customer who was shopping after work. She was wearing "scrubs", had a puppy tied to her ankle and she was looking at some kind of dog toys on a rack. Once I showed serious interest in Griswald, she came right over and helped Elizabeth with the sale. Everything was about the money and her expertise as a dog specialist.I guess she dressed in scrubs to look professional. I have to plead insanity. One minute I was asking questions about Griswald. The next I was asking when I could bring Kya, my bulldog, to meet Griswald.  Before I knew it, I signed the contract & I was ready to take Griswald home. Before I could get out the door, the sales pitches started. They tried to sell me dog food, a  crate -cover/mattress & bumper set,a book about French Bulldogs & a supplement to  dissolve in Griswalds  drinking water every day. I said no to everything .I told them my veterinarian was a holistic vet and that I wanted to get her advice before I bought any supplements or vitamins. Debbie told me that the breeder wouldn't honor the health warranty unless Griswald was given the supplement for a year. So I bought one jar. I did ask her to choose a collar for me.  She said  Griswald had been wearing a collar in the store and it was perfect for him. She removed it from a sales rack behind the counter and put it on him. It fit and it was pretty. It was blue leather with big glass stones on it. I told her I liked plain things for my dogs and asked if she had something else...just an ordinary, functional collar. She did have one for around $6.00 so I said fine, I'll take it. I agreed that the blue collar did look nice so I asked her to leave it on Griswald...I'd buy both. I had bought a dog crate from Debbie the day before so  I could put Griswald in it when I brought him home. When I put it together, I thought it was a little too small. I went to a few sites online and looked at crates  and most recommended the next size up for French Bulldogs. So, when I went back to get Griswald I brought the crate into the store and said I wanted to exchange it for the next larger size. Debbie was adamant and a little angry that I was questioning her.  The owner, Elizabeth showed me the crate she had for one of her dogs and said Debbie was right smaller is better. I said I really wanted a bigger crate but I finally said ok and kept the smaller one.  That crate is now in my garage because Griswald outgrew it when he was about 11 months old. He just became too long to fit comfortably. He can stretch out and sleep in the crate he has now... it's the perfect size. Plus there's  room for his water dish.  Once I got Griswald settled at home, I looked at my receipts  & I realized that the blue collar cost $52. I went back to Gigi & Lucas with the collar & the receipt but Debbie wouldn't give me a refund or a store credit. She told me that  the collar couldn't be returned  because it was against the law for her to resell it since Griswald had worn it. I reminded her that she told me Griswald had  been wearing it every day until I bought him & that  she kept it on the rack to sell. Finally, I wrote a note to the owner, put the note into the bag with the collar and left it for Elizabeth. Elizabeth called me and  wouldn't agree to give me a refund either but she did give me a store credit.If you want to overpay for your new puppy and you think that  puppy mills are a good thing, then make sure you buy your new puppy in a pet shop! Buying Griswald was like buying a car or another inanimate object. They tried to sell me anything & everything that I didn't need and made up answers to all of my questions. They lied about where they bought  Griswald. They got angry when my veterinarian had concerns about his health. Debbie accused me of exaggerating about Griswalds health problems to get a discount. It was a terrible experience for me & I could see from Griswalds' behavior once I got him home what a sad & traumatizing experience it had been for him.                                                                                                                              I left The Atlantic Doggery without buying anything.Tomorrow, I'm going back to find out if Debbie is working there as an employee or if she is the new owner. I asked her if she worked at Gigi & Lucas anymore & she said no. If she was hired to help the owner sell puppies, then I'm going to do everything I can to stop them. This pet shop sells healthy dog food,great toys & equipment and they groom dogs too so I'll be surprised if they're going to start selling puppies. But I never thought that Elizabeth at Gigi & Lucas would ever sell puppies either. If Debbie is just a new employee & nothing else is changing at the pet store then I just won't shop there anymore.