When Ashlynn and Tyler Pease left Texas for their destination wedding, they thought the hardest part would be saying goodbye to their two dogs.
Because the ceremony was out of the country, the couple decided to board their doodles at Ruff-inn Pet Lodge in Robstown, according to local outlet 3 News. It was a painful choice — they had never been away from their pets before.
“I cried when I dropped off our pets because I’ve never dropped off our babies. We are a newlywed couple — these are like our children,” Ashlynn said.
On the morning of their Oct. 25 wedding, while Ashlynn was getting ready to walk down the aisle, messages started coming in about an emergency involving their 1-year-old dog, Bailey. Ashlynn didn’t see the messages, but Tyler did — and made the heartbreaking decision to wait until after the ceremony to tell her.
“He told me after our ceremony, and we just cried and cried,” she recalled.
According to an incident report filed with the Nueces County Sheriff’s Office, obtained by the outlet, Tyler told authorities that Bailey had been severely injured at the boarding facility. He told 3 News that Bailey was rushed to Oso Creek Animal Hospital for emergency treatment, but the veterinary team could not save her.
“They shaved her all down to see the extent of her injuries,” Tyler told 3 News. “After I saw those photos, I immediately broke down.”
What makes the loss even harder, the couple says, is that they still don’t know exactly what happened to Bailey or how long she was in distress. “Was it a split second or 20 to 30 minutes?” Tyler said. “We have no idea.”
The outlet reached out to Ruff-inn Pet Lodge for comment on Tuesday, Dec. 9, but did not receive an immediate response.
According to the incident report, Tyler told deputies that an employee from Ruff-inn Pet Lodge called to inform them that their dog “had been bitten numerous times by another dog staying at the facility and was going to be transported to a veterinary hospital.”
As the Peases tried to fly back from their wedding, they were notified that their Goldendoodle had died from her injuries.
In the report, the couple alleges that the owner of Ruff-inn gave them “several different stories of how their dog had died.”
Deputies advised that the situation would be handled as a civil matter, and the Peases said they had already contacted an attorney.
Ashlynn and Tyler told 3 News that the business paid for all of Bailey’s medical bills and did not charge them for boarding. Still, they claim they have received little cooperation or transparency as they search for answers about what happened.
The couple now wants to warn other pet owners and stress that online reviews don’t necessarily tell the full story about a business.
Katie Galan with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) told 3 News that pet owners should consult multiple sources when researching a boarding facility.
“Don’t just go to one source to look at those reviews because you don’t know — you might have some adjustments to those reviews. You might have some people who are persuaded to make positive reviews,” she said, noting that Google and Yelp reviews remain public, while businesses can choose which reviews appear on their Facebook pages.
She also urged anyone who has a bad experience with a business to file a verified complaint with the BBB.
“We actually scrub those complaints and make sure they are legitimate marketplace complaints,” Galan said. “And once those complaints are addressed by the business owner or not, they stay up for two years.”
A company’s response to complaints, she added, directly affects its BBB rating, which can be a key indicator of consumer trust.
As for the Peases, they are clinging to the memories of Bailey’s short life. The couple had a custom cake topper made in her likeness for their wedding; it now sits on a shelf in their home next to a framed photo of their dog — a bittersweet reminder of the day that was supposed to be their happiest.
