Tug of war between pet parlour and dog owner

One resident in Weltevreden Park was left reeling in anger after her dog was severely burnt at a grooming parlour on 27 September.

Flicka Gerber took her two dogs to Posh Paws for a shampoo and cut, and when she returned to fetch them three hours later, she was told they were not ready. “I dropped them off at around 9am and when I returned at 12:30pm, the person working there told me that the clippers were overheating and I would have to wait a little bit longer. When I finally took them home, I noticed one of them was quite uncomfortable and kept licking itself on its side.”

Gerber then realised that the dog had a burn mark after she had returned home from the parlour and said they refused to take responsibility for the injuries. Flicka took her dog to the vet where it was treated with antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication.

Posh Paws’ manager Annette Moll says Gerber inquired about the injured dog on 7 October. “With my experience [eight years], a clipper cannot burn an animal. We use industrial clippers and dryers. The dryers automatically go off when the temperature is too high. We asked the client for a report from her vet to verify that the dog suffered burns caused by the clippers and we are still waiting.”

Moll adds that at the time Flicka picked up her dogs, she was seemingly pleased with the trimmings, Gerber on the other hand feels betrayed by the parlour because she left her animals in their care.