Dog Owners Demand Answers After Flooding K!lls Multiple Pets

The distraught owners of the puppies who perished at the District Puppies dog daycare on Monday during floods in Northeast D.C. want to know more about how the company and emergency personnel responded.

Water poured in, drowning ten dogs. On Wednesday, their owners sobbed and consoled one another. Some others claimed they thought their animals were in cages when the water occurred.

“I was supposed to be celebrating his birthday,” one owner said through sobs.

“They were so innocent. They didn’t do anything to deserve this,” another said as she cried.

The kennel on Rhode Island Avenue NE, where flooding occurred a year earlier, was housing close to 50 dogs. Streets were inundated by heavy rain, which rose along big glass panes until they cracked. Although staff members and firefighters saved as many pups as they could, 10 canines passed away.

Doggy Daycare Owner Apologizes

Jonathan Garrow, a dog owner who lost his pet, described the incident as “an entirely preventable tragedy.” He claimed that despite contacting the Humane Rescue Alliance, he was denied access to his dog’s remains.

“They said no because there was a lot of blood. She was really injured and she was struggling, and so we’re convinced, because [the owner] refuses to deny it, that our dog and some of these other dogs — if not all of them — were in cages when this happened and that she died alone and drowning in a cage,” he said, fighting tears.

Owner of District Dogs Jacob Hensley wept when declaring earlier that day that the team did their best and was heroic.

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The city tried to provide information to reporters. Officials will proceed “line by line or minute by minute” later, according to Mayor Muriel Bowser.

In a statement, District Dogs stated that they were attempting to speak with the employees to learn additional details. If dogs were being kept in cages when the water started, they made no mention of it. They declared the following:

“Monday was a terrible tragedy. The entire District Dogs family is grieving for those who lost their beloved dogs. We spent much of yesterday talking with staff, who themselves were processing the trauma and pain of the day. We are committed to supporting them in this difficult time while also learning from their experience to understand what happened.

Within minutes of observing high water in the area, staff began to take appropriate actions to move dogs in our care to the highest location in our facility. Within a few minutes the water had risen to approximately 6 feet outside our location. Staff were following emergency procedures as the glass gave way and the building flooded. Our staff rushed to continue to rescue dogs to the best of their ability despite the water rising above their heads.

On Monday, District Dogs ownership spoke with each of the owners who lost dogs or their on-site representatives. Today, we are once again reaching out to the owners to share the additional information that we have gathered since Monday and to reaffirm our commitment to communicate during this difficult time.

We appreciate the thoughts and support from our clients and community. We again want to thank our staff for their incredible efforts and dedication.”