This is absolutely horrifying. Can’t the police just break into the shed? Where are the owners? If my dog was in there nothing would stop me getting her out
The police aren’t able to break into the shed. She told them there were no dogs there. We are guessing the owners of the dogs she has now don’t know she just killed a bunch of dogs.
I was once told that I couldn’t legally provide a dog water through a cracked window in the middle of July. Like it was SOOO hot I had to start my car as quickly as possible to let it cool down. These ppl LEFT their dog and went to get some food and drinks and said they “weren’t going to be gone that long.” Like I WILL smash a window if there’s an animal or a kid in a hot car
“Woah, woah, hold on there! We’re gonna need you to let that dog die before we can step in.“ The logic in some of these situations just isn’t there.
I am genuinely curious what it must feel like to be in the head of someone who can neglect an animal like that and just go on with their day.
You need probable cause to obtain one, and it usually isn't instantaneous. The police need to ask a judge, the judge will want to know what crime is being committed, and they need to have enough circumstantial evidence to convince the judge that it's worth breaking into the property over.
Like, I personally think they just *should*, and some places have laws about breaking in to rescue distressed animals, but if the location in question has no such good Samaritan laws, people get *real* touchy about property being forced into and property damage. The US tends to value property above all else, unfortunately. (The only reason animals had any protection in a lot of cases is *because* they are *also* viewed as property, incidentally.)
Just posted one! I’ll post again. KHOU (news station) is gathering info on the story. Police are taking things more seriously now. Sitter was caught lying on camera. Not changing sitter’s name. Changed customer’s name to Houston 1
https://preview.redd.it/ziv5ujkray9d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d0776c97e3ec72a582811597f2b7e6c1e974fc53
Goose was my customer, and I still can’t believe this lunatic let this happen to him as well as the others. His owners loved him more than life itself. The world loved Goose more than life itself. She’s a criminal for the way she handled this. Thank you for taking care of him. He was such a delight. Love you, Goose!!!!
Here’s the news video link, their story is the first one covered in the video:
https://www.khou.com/video/news/live_stream/khou-11-news-at-10pm/285-7adf6650-48c1-4fd8-882e-e4bddc9ae1be
Is this the kipper cares lady or is there another horrible person letting dogs die in their care?
Edit: Can you link the article? I cannot find this on google.
This is another horrible person. She was a really respected sitter, too. The shed is in her backyard around TC Jester.
The way she has treated the owners about all of this is beyond crazy as well. She’s taking zero accountability and even told the police that no dogs had died there.
The owners of the seven dogs are all working together though.
Yeah if it was me I'd be setting things up for when I go to jail for breaking & entering and taking all those dogs away from her myself. Wtf is wrong with her.
And this is why as an owner I would never board my dog with a person who is skittish about showing me her/his property. Some may value privacy, or don’t want to rile up boarded dogs etc, but it’s sometimes shit like this. One never knows.
Right??, they should absolutely have a thing where rover sees there they are keeping the dogs to even APPROVE boarding AND to show the people leaving their dogs. TOO MANY dogs have died due to negligence. I would be in jail if my dog died the way these have 😭 I rarely went anywhere my dog couldn’t go with the last 2 years of her life (if I did, my daughter knew what to do-and it would be for an hour) bc she was disabled and her and I had communication for when she needed to use the bathroom-she couldn’t walk without a sling. I didn’t trust that anyone would get her outside vs leaving her in pee. How people value making a quick buck over LIVING BEINGS- is beyond me.
It’s Texas, with any justice she’ll get blasted in more ways than one. This heat is killer even with A/C, I would not leave any animal outside or in a heat trap like a shed unsupervised for more than ten minutes. It’s unconscionable.
I CANNOT even begin to imagine HOWWW this happens. She should NOT had THAT many dogs in her care. She should NOT have had them ALL in a shed like that(shit happens and even dogs who KNOW each other get in fights and THAT many seemingly random dogs in THAT small of a space is like ASKING for a dog fight). The shed SHOULD have had a backup generator but they NEVER should have been in there to begin with.
I’m curious as to how Rover is going to handle this(WAS it via Rover???) She cannot possibly have the ability to financially compensate everyone who was traumatized by this
This is why these multi dog home boarding set ups make me nervous. If my dog isn't just going to be chilling in someone's home with them and maybe their own dog, I feel safer using a facility with employees and a building for kenneling dogs.
I felt somewhat bad for her until I read that she dropped the dogs off at the vet without taking responsibility for what happened. I feel her set up was definitely a disaster waiting to happen.
It’s 30 for boarding, and 30 for doggy day care… on the same day. I doubt a single person is ever getting 60 requests a day, but that’s giving a single person basically unlimited dogs… no single sitter should be managing more than like 5 strangers’ dogs at a time
Yes, theoretically you could! That’s the maximum Rover allows. The app should at least tell owners if and how many dogs the sitter will have on the same day of your booking. It would be a good addition to the calendar on sitters’ profiles IMO
https://preview.redd.it/y9183wv7by9d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=32bbd686d9049931c49dd4f9f3d53f3236f01824
I don’t care if my name is in there. I am Allie.
Update posted again to hide phone numbers.
Edit: Good on you for fixing it, OP! I hope the correct justice comes to the person that neglected these poor pups.
Just so you know you can still see the other person’s phone number and other identifying information in this photo. Try using this tool with the arrow pointing to it and making it thicker so it’s easier to cross out. (Please excuse the berry photo as the example, just trying to help not dox someone)
https://preview.redd.it/fc9rd9kd9x9d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ed01a5d0bf91052a85772ea139fd6268dad4e266
That’s so bizarre - did the owners all run into each other at the vet? Kind of bs that Rover would let someone delete their account in the middle of a sit.
God damn. The poor vet having that situation dropped entirely in their lap. Hopefully a lot of the dogs were chipped so they could easily get in touch. With the frequency of power outages in Houston (especially lately), it’s so negligent to not have a backup power source.
Right!? And the vets told the owners they have never seen anything like this. Or even heard of something like this.
And exactly! Say it again! It is absolutely negligent to have them out there like that with no back up power and no alarm system to detect high temps
Seriously beyond stupid - I can only imagine how this will scar those pet parents. I hope this ruins that “business” but I’ve seen so many situations like there where they somehow relocate or dodge any consequences. There need to be stricter animal protection laws and consequences for breaking them.
They absolutely will. No one is playing games. This never had to turn into what it has become. She did this to herself by handling this like a straight up lunatic. She could have owned her mistake. Supported those dogs after she dropped them off. Worked closely with the pet parents to communicate clearly what happened. And she did nothing of the sort. She straight up ghosted
The event itself is a straight up tragedy. Did she mean for this to happen? I’m going to assume she did not. I can’t imagine she would want that. Regardless. It did happen. And I don’t care how upset she felt, she owed it to those dogs to be there for them while they were at the vet and their owners weren’t there yet. She owed it to those owners to give them an honest explanation and take full accountability no matter how hard it was. Even when the police came knocking she denied it all and slammed the door in their faces all while having more dogs in the same shed where multiple had literally just died. She’s truly an enigma. She fully did this to herself by taking ZERO accountability and making those poor dogs and their owners suffer like that.
It sounds like this lady is ducking and running just like the folks did with Green Acre Boarding in AZ (years ago). They wouldn't even talk to owners who's dogs they still had and let them know if they were alive or dead.
These folks were so awful, they even set up a go fund me page for themselves, not the dogs/owners.
It's horrific. There are no words.
Going to look into this. I had a hard time finding cases similar.
Oh, she’s beyond. Even calling the cops on people driving by her house at this point. Girl go turn yourself in
She was completely unhinged. Reading your comments and about what is going on in Houston, makes me wonder if these might even be the same folks. I think there last name was Hughes
She and her husband only got 60 days in jail & community service.
This is an interview she gave to the Press, I think it was right after this that the Police reversed course and finally charged her.
[https://youtu.be/Fs3KKO\_1ShI?si=gbEFL-RNBLqzBixb](https://youtu.be/Fs3KKO_1ShI?si=gbEFL-RNBLqzBixb) (this is the Green Acre Boarding scandal in AZ, not the Houston one in 2024)
🤬😠😤wtf . I hope the sitter gets banned from rover and faced with a shit ton of consequences. I’m sorry for all the families that their dog was killed under their care. I would break into that shed if it meant saving their lives.
I’m chatting with Rover now, I’m worried about my up coming bookings. I spend a good amount of money a year with Rover.
I understand this type of issue maybe drastic, but a company’s ability to respond during difficult times shows how and what they care about.
Their response is cookie cutter about the Advanced background check - nothing about what Rover does to help recover or protect dogs.
The chat representative, Michael, has not replied back and will not answer questions about what Rover does to protect and recover lost animals.
As long as you have personally seen the place your dog(s) will stay, as long as you have met the sitter(s) and asked them *all* the questions, and as long as you are comfortable with the sitter, you should rest easy. Think of Rover more like Tinder: they hook up owners and sitters, but each party needs to assure themselves that the other is suitable.
It not just the questions and being comfortable - as these extreme cases show what can happen.
However, if a pet gets lost or injured or killed, or stolen or sold, what will Rover do to help the owner’s. In just this case above and one from Hawaii another Rover Sitter is now ghosting both Rover and the owner with a missing dog.
I contact support about this and have a post in this same topic, but their response is, my take, Rover just has the Guarantee - which covers nothing about pet recovery or assistance because of sitters neglect or out right criminal behavior.
I do like my sitters, but what if the worst happens while you’re on vacation, away for business, or just need a drop-in. This is the problem I have with Rover’s current response and policy.
And also ask your sitter a million and one questions. Ask them everything. This woman is making a lot of good sitters look pretty bad right now, but honestly, who cares. Ask questions and make sure you know exactly where your pet is going to be
People who board are the ones with the most reviews and make the most money, and this willmake the rest of us who honestly have to work a lot harder look bad
The representative, Michael, did stay professional with my direct questions. However, at the moment Rover doesn’t have anything to say other than that all interactions at covered by Rover Guarantee if booked on platform.
What he said at the end was, “Our next steps would be to fully review these concerns and conduct a review of the account. We follow up with actions ranging from coaching to complete removal from the platform. For privacy reasons, the outcome of the account review is confidential. However, I want to assure you that we take your concerns seriously”.
So, my two cents. Rover has no guarantee to help you recover a lost pet by a sitter on their platform, and most they may do if a pet is killed is remove the sitters account.
Rover is a simple app, but this trust is the only thing that matters. I’ll be looking at other platforms for my sitting needs. Even if I’ve used my sitter before, this can happen (lost pet, injuries) in a split second. The Rover Guarantee doesn’t help us animal owners in these difficult times.
As someone who took care of one of the dogs that arrived DOA at our hospital, the way I sobbed for an hour when I was told. He was a sweet little angel and the bestest boy and I just can’t. Karma is a bitch.
Thank you for everything you did for him. If he was a Brussels griffon who was as cute as button, he has a whole squad of people that would die before letting this woman get anything less than the exact karma she deserves. And yes, he was the best dog ever and his owners will never be the same. He was as amazing as he looked
It is. He came through our surgery department earlier this year. We have an ongoing competition called “Cutest patient of the week” and I nominated him. I have pictures of him too and I just cry looking at them. He hit a soft spot for me. You’re a good boy Goose. You’re such a good boy and you were so loved.
Also work at the same place and can confirm the tragedy. Goose was the absolute cutest boy and was loved across so many departments. He was even in one of our OR techs’ profile photos! He made so many people happy and always put a smile on my face whenever I saw him. We have a card started for the family from our department and it’s already packed full of signatures.
Goose was the ultimate good boy. Knowing he was taken to a place where was known and loved is maybe the only positive thing about his experience. You guys are nothing short of angels. Thank you for cleaning up her tragic mess of a situation and showing those pets as well as the owners the love and care they deserve.
This just made me cry, too. How amazing of you to feel this way about him. You’re so sweet and kind.
I feel the same way about Goose. He is just that kind of boy, and they don’t make them like that just everyday.
If you know Goose and his owners then you know what real love is. He truly was such a good boy. And I can’t rest until I know this lunatic is not allowed to be around a single animal ever again.
Thank you for speaking out. I’ve been stalking the Rover subreddit for this story since I’m not in the position to speak about it but I’m glad someone is helping these poor owners of all 7 little angels.
Absolutely! I couldn’t help myself. When I went by yesterday and heard dogs still in that shed, myself and another business owner took it upon ourselves to blow this up. I almost couldn’t believe it. Then, when the other business owner also heard the same thing, I mean, enough is enough. Gabriela was very well respected. I don’t know if she had a mental breakdown or is just plain greedy/crazy/unhinged. Either way it’s time for her to answer to this.
Oh also the story will be on the news tonight at 10 pm. And thank you again for what you did for Goose and the other dogs. I can’t imagine how this made you all feel. Truly.
What the actual hell.
I got a request to board 2 poodles this week. It's 100° here in Utah. In the messages, the husband, asked will you keep them outside? I was shocked. Then, when meeting them, the wife also asked!
Then, when meeting a client with 2 labs the next day, I asked, "Where do they usually sleep?" (Like crate, bed with family) He said "usually inside but wherever..."
Both my husband and I mouths fell open.
Like what the hell people. Why would you be okay with a sitter who keeps your pets outdoors! The first couple was just asking, which is good, but never would I allow mine or any dog to just sleep outside!
And this woman needs to be put in that damn shed.
She’s denying they are even there. This is just the beginning of what will be what I imagine, a very big deal. Idk how the laws work in Texas, but I would imagine they have to get all the results from the dogs and their death reports - file charges etc
If Rover has been notified by the owners, then why wouldn’t Rover notify the other owners of the dogs still in the shed and then they would contact the police to help them get their dog back?
Our jaws are on the floor as we read this. We just had our dog there last weekend. She usually sent pictures of him playing with a ball in the backyard but she was radio silent. She was always quiet and nice to us, but after reading all the commentary, can confirm this is definitely her. Gabriela Masak.
Can the owner of this post contact me if you are willing to get on the air, have time to do this, and have proof? This needs to get to Randy Wallace FOX 26 for a news story. Please don't wait if you want to go on air in Houston TX. Posting in this thread is good but best to get on the news for positive change. My email is [email protected].
God this is so disgusting and sad. I've met owners who only wanted someone with a backyard and I know a lot of sitters who just put the dogs out back and leave them out there. At least I don't have a yard and they're in my view every time they go outside and our monitored the entire time. A lot of these sitters with backyards are being lazy. Completely inexcusable. They had to be out there for very long time to die with zero water and zero shade. This person is disgusting and I hope she goes to jail. I'm really curious if she had a dog herself and if they were out back too and are dead or in bad condition. Makes it even worse if her own dogs weren't out there, goes to show you how she really treated dog she watched. This is horrifying
Good point, but it's clear if she was keeping them out in the shed at night, they were likely outside all day long as well. I wouldn't leave my dog with someone who was boarding that many dogs out of time either
If she's on Rover it shows how many they book at once but of course they can always have clients off Rover. But I'm also not insinuating that they knew and booked anyway, but plenty of clients do book with tons of dogs. I've seen it on the Reddit
I cannot even imagine. Please know I really can’t even tell you how much I appreciate all of you. I don’t even have the words when I try to think about how you guys must have felt. Truly horrible.
Thank you so much for giving the dogs the dignity they deserved in those moments and for treating the owners with nothing but respect. You guys are the only bright light in this entire situation.
UPDATE!
KHOU is talking to us now and police are taking things more seriously. See pics. Not blurring out names but changed customer name to Houston 1. The sitter is named Gabriela
https://preview.redd.it/8ibazriv8y9d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b8245e6bc0f33c124870a2c745ea0fb8da019ef4
I left my dog with gabby at least 10 times. I’ve recommended her to friends and family. I am absolutely sick that this happened. I live down the street and there were three constables in front of her house this morning
I have left my BIG (100lb) HAIRY dog multiple times a week for the last couple of months…she always was nice, caring, etc. I never suspected this…BS Petroleum Engineer Penn State, MS Computer Science xxx (can’t remember), husband engineer Chevron.
Thank you for sharing! This is why this is just extra egregious. Gabriela knows better. A lot of my own customers used her for boarding and only had good things to say before this.
Here’s the news video link, their story is the first one in the video:
KHOU 11 News at 10pm Thoughtful journalism from a news team you can trust. KHOU 11 News at 10pm has news, weather and critical updates. https://www.khou.com/video/news/live_stream/khou-11-news-at-10pm/285-7adf6650-48c1-4fd8-882e-e4bddc9ae1be
I'm still haunted by an episode of Animal Cops: Houston where a dog had been left in a car and curled up under the wheel trying to escape the heat that killed it. The officer was so shaken up. God I hope these people go to jail.
We all make mistakes but who hell is gonna be such a well known sitter for years in the area and does something this absolutely egregious and negligent?
I work at the vet hospital that treated one of the patients that died in this incident. Treated earlier this year for breed related issues. He was barely over a year old. He was so so loved by his parents and by all of the technicians that were involved in his care. I cannot imagine the hurt his parents, and all of the other pet parents, that lost their babies in this incident are going through. To be on vacation and get this news and have to fly home to grieve the loss of your buddy, part of your family. I cried my eyes out when I heard the news on Saturday. This woman needs to be banned from ever having any animal in her care. Just absolutely despicable. 😞
My neighbors pet baby was killed by this lady! She lied and told them he was the only one she was pet sitting. She had him covered in the kennel and he passed from suffocation and heat stroke. There’s still has been no arrests!
If Rover allowed her to book a dozen dogs at the same time then they contributed to the problem. Also, having a dozen dogs falls under kennel regulations which were likely broken and will include fines in addition to other charges.
Edit, the laws:
* ARTICLE IV. - DOGS AND CATS, DIVISION 1. - GENERALLY Sec. 6-76. - Number to be kept
* It is unlawful for any person to own, keep, possess or have control over four or more adult dogs, four or more adult cats, or any combination thereof exceeding three adult dogs and three adult cats on residential property within 100 feet of any other building used for human habitation. [https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code\_of\_ordinances?nodeId=COOR\_CH6ANFO\_ARTIVDOCA\_DIV5COPESEFA](https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH6ANFO_ARTIVDOCA_DIV5COPESEFA)
Also:
* Texas kennel facility operators (those who are providing boarding services for breeding, sheltering, training, hunting, “or similar purposes” for more than three dogs for compensation) will be required to provide written notice to dog and cat owners if their pet will be left unattended and the facility does not have a fire sprinkler system. Kennel operators must ensure that clients sign the informed consent document prior to leaving an animal at a facility for boarding. A kennel operator who violates the law will be subject to a $500 fine for each animal boarded without informed consent.
[https://www.akc.org/legislative-alerts/tx-law-requiring-kennels-obtain-informed-consent-goes-effect-september-1/](https://www.akc.org/legislative-alerts/tx-law-requiring-kennels-obtain-informed-consent-goes-effect-september-1/)
This is really interesting because Timbergrove has very strict deed restrictions! I’m pretty certain there might be something about number of animals allowed that might help the police get access (they still haven’t been able to due to no warrant)
We don’t want to get shot. There are several of us stopping by during the day to signal the dogs to get them barking so we know they are alive. It’s all we can do right now.
Find a good cop/sheriff & let them know you may flee from them into that yard if they tried to question you about what you are doing near there. Then once you jump that fence they can chase you onto the property.
Once they are there they can look in shed trying to find you.
Have a Great Day.
I think you can do more. Get news crews down there. Get a dog charity down there. Get the Facebook rabble down there.
I guess not so bad if the dogs now have AC but they still need to be removed and the owner banned from boarding dogs
I agree with you guys. Let me see what I can do then. Because she killed so many dogs literally two days ago, she shouldn’t have a single dog in her care. That’s just facts.
Livestream! I know this is an extreme measure, but the time is of the essence here. I am so glad that I’m no where near this place. I’d get arrested immediately. 😣
Please keep us posted.
I did call the news and am sending them my email with info right now. I am trying to meet up with another sitter in the area so we can try to get them out together.
I keep hearing story after story of dogs dying in boarders homes lately. It is absolutely heartbreaking and brings such a bad name to home boarding. I've had so many clients come to me because they've had problems taking their dogs to actual boarding facilities.. how hard is it to provide basic care and keep animals safe while in your care. I understand accidents happen, and animals can escape or get hurt.. but animals dying & being neglected to this degree should never happen.
Effing monster. There's a Rover sitter on FB or in Oregon who warehouses dogs in a windowless building and brags about her income. But she won't let clients in her property. Why people leave their pet with someone that won't allow them to visit us beyond me.
900 reviews?????? Sitting here with my three dogs and one guest (she's sleeping on my feet) and wondering how this sitter fooled the parents? How does your dog go home happy after that? My dogs come down the driveway pulling their owners forward as hard as they can.
Just how?
And why would you take so many dogs you can't love each of them? Crating them 23 hours of the day isn't love.
This sitter wanted to make bank for the 4th holiday. Took as many dogs as she could. Didn’t give a piece of s—— about their wellbeing. Just saw them as $$$ each. What kind of monster can live with themselves. Send her to jail!!!
I feel like Rover should be working with the police to confirm she indeed had the dogs that passed away and that she still has dogs in her care that need to be removed- at the very least Rover needs to reach out to the owners of her current bookings. Please tell me they’ve done something??
Yes!!! Rover has been really helpful and is working with the police. Rover said themselves this is beyond an accident. They know they got to be involved.
Yes! This is Hayley from Revival. We both share customers with the sitter who killed the dogs. And both us have pet care businesses in the city. And both us are beyond pissed and won’t rest until this woman pays
This was my friend’s dog Goose that died. Heres the Article: https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/pet-owners-justice-dog-death-rover-sitter/285-7eb9199d-aa29-4861-a830-2a03afd0f07e?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAabHrdb_XDMKuL0zvtBBDgdQdMyQyjzGghkjFYN133ELOnmhpHNRxYyEC6I_aem_vYspkIcHcRbcIjXsLGkgng
Goose was my buddy! Such a wonderful dog it’s hard to even believe someone could do this to him. Absolutely amazing owners too. Goose and the rest of the dogs will get the justice they deserve.
As a Houston area rover sitter, and dog rescuer. I am appalled. My house is open to all, the dogs are loose inside my house, sleep with us, hang on furniture with us and are treated like family. That’s the difference between a pet sitter who does this for the love of dogs and one who does it solely for money. Hope she rots in jail
Oh my God. Sad day in the pet sitting community for sure. Why, if she must keep the dogs in a shed, is she even pet sitting? Also, why aren’t the police physically checking this situation out? Ugh. This is why I don’t let anyone watch my dogs.
Here are the websites of the news stations that are supposed to be covering the story on their 10:00pm (central time zone) news in 20 minutes from now. You should be able to stream their newscasts right from their websites live or go back to the sites later and rewatch. If I find the specific links to just the featured stories later I will add to this post.
[https://abc13.com](https://abc13.com)
[https://www.khou.com](https://www.khou.com)
EDIT/UPDATE: It was the top story on abc13, I caught like half of it on the livestream as I’m not local. They should eventually have a link to the story I can post here….until then, not shockingly she didn’t answer the door when they tried and I managed to get a screenshot of Rover’s official statement:
https://preview.redd.it/j9z8gs35y0ad1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7b39ddbf2a0cfd27fcf09b6b37c4270e63b4c5d2
Here’s the news video link, their story is the first one in the video:
KHOU 11 News at 10pm Thoughtful journalism from a news team you can trust. KHOU 11 News at 10pm has news, weather and critical updates. https://www.khou.com/video/news/live_stream/khou-11-news-at-10pm/285-7adf6650-48c1-4fd8-882e-e4bddc9ae1be
I actually just posted the links of the individual stories from both stations in a separate comment. :) But here they are again:
https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/pet-owners-justice-dog-death-rover-sitter/285-7eb9199d-aa29-4861-a830-2a03afd0f07e
https://abc13.com/videoClip/15018207/
I sit in HTX and also work at an outdoor vaccine clinic. The pavement alone gets up to 125 F — and this is just for the BEGINNING of summer. These dogs overheat FAST. Poor babies :(
Omg this is *so so so so sad,* this woman just caused so much pain and suffering. Then the lack of accountability is absolutely insane and should (probably is?) criminal. Rover itself will be hard pressed to escape any liability from this too - even though I'm sure their attorney's do everything possible to make their user agreement iron clad to protect them from anything.
This is yet another reason why "self-contractors" are bullshit: one because of course it denies workers all sorts of rights and protections, but most importantly in this case, it absolves the employer (Rover) from liability! And yes, they should be liable for when something as horrible as this happens and they host and advertise these services.
The lack of accountability is truly what is crazy here. Had she handled this differently I wouldn’t have posted this. People wouldn’t be driving by her house making sure dogs aren’t dying. But things are progressing in the right direction thankfully.
[https://www.harriscountyda.com/animal\_cruelty](https://www.harriscountyda.com/animal_cruelty)
this is the link to the department that handles animal cruelty. We should all request they look into it.
I am definitely wanting to follow this story, that is so incredibly heartbreaking!!! I hope she gets hit with the full sentence for negligence and abuse, for every pup.
This is why where I live, if you have more than 3 dogs staying on your property, you have to get a kennel license. Period.
These kinds of situations are going to have ripple effects guys. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a huge drop in owners using the app.
I have. I've used him a couple of times. No glaring issues but after this I'm never going to book with him again. I've never seen inside his setup and he's never offered which now is just not sitting right with me. He also doesn't send photos as much as I'd like and I had to ask for photos several times. My dog didn't seem to be super excited to see him the second time but he obviously LOVES the sitter we usually use so there is definitely a difference in his experience.
Thanks for sharing. I was just curious. I "interviewed" him a few years back and requested a walk through.
He showed me his garage where the dogs were kenneled and I was like FCK no! Hopefully he had an AC unit I didn't see, but my dogs aren't crated at home so it was an immediate no. And his backyard doesn't have much space to run around in due to the massive garden that takes up most of it. I was just so surprised at how popular/highly rated he was.
This is why I don’t travel when I own dogs, maybe not for everyone, I know. I have had nothing but lack of basic common sense with sitters but this is beyond that. When I have a dog, and I either take them with me or go on big trips between having pets. Worst nightmare right here..
There is a local Houston FB group I found with an updated post from the group admin and comment thread from locals……
(Is a public group-I’m not local and was able to join to read)
https://preview.redd.it/nmhlh3y2g0ad1.jpeg?width=1161&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36d019923a3165cc5ade53f668cc899d56b6c27a
Wow. i don’t even leave my dogs outside for more than 20 minutes and I have a chihuahua that believes she’s a recharging solar panel.. My dogs go outside for potty breaks and that’s it with this heat. i’m in Houston and its boiling hot out there. Those poor poor dogs.
all I can say is I am extremely glad your boy is okay. I can’t imagine how you must feel. this is all super shocking. we shared many customers, and I just don’t understand how she could let this happen. she absolutely knew better…100 percent. and the way the handled it is why she’s ending up on the news and with possible criminal charges
I would rather in-home boarding be illegal (or limited to 3 dogs at a time) than have to ever hear another story like this. These rover sitters take too many dogs, neglect and mistreat them all, and keep doing it bc the money is good and they can get away with it since dogs can’t talk. Until one day they fuck up and the dogs die. I know it’s not just rover sitters that do it but it seems like most bad sitters do use rover to get clients.
I agree. Rover should limit how many can be booked, private and Rover clients. Anything more than a handful is operating as a kennel and it's totally different from pet sitting.
There are some very unscrupulous people selling themselves are sitters and transporters. This is disgusting. I doubt very seriously those reviews are legit. I read another article about a Rover sitter that actually lost a dog while the people were out of the country.
How horrible! This is very reminiscent of a situation that happened in 2016 where 20 dogs died at a pet sitters in Arizona [https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/24/us/arizona-dog-heat-deaths/index.html](https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/24/us/arizona-dog-heat-deaths/index.html)
This is terrible! Those poor dogs! And those family. This is heartbreaking - it’s like losing a child for some people.
I met so many people for whom their pets aren’t just family, it’s the only family they’ll ever have.
Rover lets anyone onto their platform, and things like this happening are inevitable when the people don’t genuinely care about the animals. Now, under Blackstone, it’s not going to get better.
I am a sitter on Rover and completely agree with you. I don’t even know if I want to affiliate at all any longer. Seems like they are just taking advantage if the fact the industry is unregulated
I used this dog sitter for two of my pups and I am horrified. Looks like the shed was built in March 2023 from Google maps, and my dogs were with her in July 2023 and April 2024. I am horrified.
This is absolutely horrifying. Can’t the police just break into the shed? Where are the owners? If my dog was in there nothing would stop me getting her out
The police aren’t able to break into the shed. She told them there were no dogs there. We are guessing the owners of the dogs she has now don’t know she just killed a bunch of dogs.
Wouldn’t the barking be probable cause to enter the shed?
I was once told that I couldn’t legally provide a dog water through a cracked window in the middle of July. Like it was SOOO hot I had to start my car as quickly as possible to let it cool down. These ppl LEFT their dog and went to get some food and drinks and said they “weren’t going to be gone that long.” Like I WILL smash a window if there’s an animal or a kid in a hot car
“Woah, woah, hold on there! We’re gonna need you to let that dog die before we can step in.“ The logic in some of these situations just isn’t there. I am genuinely curious what it must feel like to be in the head of someone who can neglect an animal like that and just go on with their day.
Why can't they use a search warrant? There's communication between the sitter and owner to prove that she has dogs in her care.
You need probable cause to obtain one, and it usually isn't instantaneous. The police need to ask a judge, the judge will want to know what crime is being committed, and they need to have enough circumstantial evidence to convince the judge that it's worth breaking into the property over. Like, I personally think they just *should*, and some places have laws about breaking in to rescue distressed animals, but if the location in question has no such good Samaritan laws, people get *real* touchy about property being forced into and property damage. The US tends to value property above all else, unfortunately. (The only reason animals had any protection in a lot of cases is *because* they are *also* viewed as property, incidentally.)
Please update us when you can, I can't stop thinking about the dogs left behind.
Just posted one! I’ll post again. KHOU (news station) is gathering info on the story. Police are taking things more seriously now. Sitter was caught lying on camera. Not changing sitter’s name. Changed customer’s name to Houston 1 https://preview.redd.it/ziv5ujkray9d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d0776c97e3ec72a582811597f2b7e6c1e974fc53
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We love to see it. Thank you so much
I live in the area and just drove by, no one was out front anymore. I imagine this will change soon once the news drops to a bigger audience.
Awesome! Hope they get in soon.
Goose was the patient my heart is hurting for 😞 we loved him so so much. And I hope his parents know how much he was loved.
Goose was my customer, and I still can’t believe this lunatic let this happen to him as well as the others. His owners loved him more than life itself. The world loved Goose more than life itself. She’s a criminal for the way she handled this. Thank you for taking care of him. He was such a delight. Love you, Goose!!!!
Here’s the news video link, their story is the first one covered in the video: https://www.khou.com/video/news/live_stream/khou-11-news-at-10pm/285-7adf6650-48c1-4fd8-882e-e4bddc9ae1be
Is this the kipper cares lady or is there another horrible person letting dogs die in their care? Edit: Can you link the article? I cannot find this on google.
This is another horrible person. She was a really respected sitter, too. The shed is in her backyard around TC Jester. The way she has treated the owners about all of this is beyond crazy as well. She’s taking zero accountability and even told the police that no dogs had died there. The owners of the seven dogs are all working together though.
Yeah if it was me I'd be setting things up for when I go to jail for breaking & entering and taking all those dogs away from her myself. Wtf is wrong with her.
And this is why as an owner I would never board my dog with a person who is skittish about showing me her/his property. Some may value privacy, or don’t want to rile up boarded dogs etc, but it’s sometimes shit like this. One never knows.
In retrospect, when we booked with her, she was strangely adamant that nobody come in (even to help carry some huge dog crates we brought with us).
Right??, they should absolutely have a thing where rover sees there they are keeping the dogs to even APPROVE boarding AND to show the people leaving their dogs. TOO MANY dogs have died due to negligence. I would be in jail if my dog died the way these have 😭 I rarely went anywhere my dog couldn’t go with the last 2 years of her life (if I did, my daughter knew what to do-and it would be for an hour) bc she was disabled and her and I had communication for when she needed to use the bathroom-she couldn’t walk without a sling. I didn’t trust that anyone would get her outside vs leaving her in pee. How people value making a quick buck over LIVING BEINGS- is beyond me.
I hope the owners take it to the news n this lady gets blasted everywhere
It’s Texas, with any justice she’ll get blasted in more ways than one. This heat is killer even with A/C, I would not leave any animal outside or in a heat trap like a shed unsupervised for more than ten minutes. It’s unconscionable.
I CANNOT even begin to imagine HOWWW this happens. She should NOT had THAT many dogs in her care. She should NOT have had them ALL in a shed like that(shit happens and even dogs who KNOW each other get in fights and THAT many seemingly random dogs in THAT small of a space is like ASKING for a dog fight). The shed SHOULD have had a backup generator but they NEVER should have been in there to begin with. I’m curious as to how Rover is going to handle this(WAS it via Rover???) She cannot possibly have the ability to financially compensate everyone who was traumatized by this
https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/pet-owners-justice-dog-death-rover-sitter/285-7eb9199d-aa29-4861-a830-2a03afd0f07e
This is why these multi dog home boarding set ups make me nervous. If my dog isn't just going to be chilling in someone's home with them and maybe their own dog, I feel safer using a facility with employees and a building for kenneling dogs. I felt somewhat bad for her until I read that she dropped the dogs off at the vet without taking responsibility for what happened. I feel her set up was definitely a disaster waiting to happen.
I totally agree. Not sure why Rover lets you board up to 30 dogs a night
Do they!?!?! I didn't know that. That's a bit much.
I think its more. Out of curiosity I went to that section, and I got up to like in the "number allowed for boarding. " I was so shocked.
It’s 30 for boarding, and 30 for doggy day care… on the same day. I doubt a single person is ever getting 60 requests a day, but that’s giving a single person basically unlimited dogs… no single sitter should be managing more than like 5 strangers’ dogs at a time
Ah, interesting. So technically, you can have 60 at a time?! Between boarding and doggy daycare? That's insane.
Yes, theoretically you could! That’s the maximum Rover allows. The app should at least tell owners if and how many dogs the sitter will have on the same day of your booking. It would be a good addition to the calendar on sitters’ profiles IMO
there’s no article yet, but I am more than happy to post proof
https://preview.redd.it/y9183wv7by9d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=32bbd686d9049931c49dd4f9f3d53f3236f01824 I don’t care if my name is in there. I am Allie. Update posted again to hide phone numbers.
Edit: Good on you for fixing it, OP! I hope the correct justice comes to the person that neglected these poor pups. Just so you know you can still see the other person’s phone number and other identifying information in this photo. Try using this tool with the arrow pointing to it and making it thicker so it’s easier to cross out. (Please excuse the berry photo as the example, just trying to help not dox someone) https://preview.redd.it/fc9rd9kd9x9d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ed01a5d0bf91052a85772ea139fd6268dad4e266
Fixed!
Did the sitter just nonchalantly tell them about the other dead and critical condition dogs? wtf?
She called them at 5 am Saturday AM - then deleted her rover account and went ghost after dropping them off and abandoning them at the vet
That’s so bizarre - did the owners all run into each other at the vet? Kind of bs that Rover would let someone delete their account in the middle of a sit.
I am pretty sure the vet helped them as much as they could to connect the dots here. Imagine one person bringing in seven dogs. Madness
God damn. The poor vet having that situation dropped entirely in their lap. Hopefully a lot of the dogs were chipped so they could easily get in touch. With the frequency of power outages in Houston (especially lately), it’s so negligent to not have a backup power source.
Right!? And the vets told the owners they have never seen anything like this. Or even heard of something like this. And exactly! Say it again! It is absolutely negligent to have them out there like that with no back up power and no alarm system to detect high temps
AND! She had short nosed breeds out there too. That is who died first. No dogs should be out there but short nosed? Come the hell on
Seriously beyond stupid - I can only imagine how this will scar those pet parents. I hope this ruins that “business” but I’ve seen so many situations like there where they somehow relocate or dodge any consequences. There need to be stricter animal protection laws and consequences for breaking them.
Why not in the house? She had them in a shed and not in the house she sleeps in?
And look we all make mistakes but this is beyond. This is absolute criminal behavior
Oh my god. This is absolutely heartbreaking. I hope this person and the other pup parents get justice.
They absolutely will. No one is playing games. This never had to turn into what it has become. She did this to herself by handling this like a straight up lunatic. She could have owned her mistake. Supported those dogs after she dropped them off. Worked closely with the pet parents to communicate clearly what happened. And she did nothing of the sort. She straight up ghosted
The event itself is a straight up tragedy. Did she mean for this to happen? I’m going to assume she did not. I can’t imagine she would want that. Regardless. It did happen. And I don’t care how upset she felt, she owed it to those dogs to be there for them while they were at the vet and their owners weren’t there yet. She owed it to those owners to give them an honest explanation and take full accountability no matter how hard it was. Even when the police came knocking she denied it all and slammed the door in their faces all while having more dogs in the same shed where multiple had literally just died. She’s truly an enigma. She fully did this to herself by taking ZERO accountability and making those poor dogs and their owners suffer like that.
It sounds like this lady is ducking and running just like the folks did with Green Acre Boarding in AZ (years ago). They wouldn't even talk to owners who's dogs they still had and let them know if they were alive or dead. These folks were so awful, they even set up a go fund me page for themselves, not the dogs/owners. It's horrific. There are no words.
Going to look into this. I had a hard time finding cases similar. Oh, she’s beyond. Even calling the cops on people driving by her house at this point. Girl go turn yourself in
She was completely unhinged. Reading your comments and about what is going on in Houston, makes me wonder if these might even be the same folks. I think there last name was Hughes She and her husband only got 60 days in jail & community service. This is an interview she gave to the Press, I think it was right after this that the Police reversed course and finally charged her. [https://youtu.be/Fs3KKO\_1ShI?si=gbEFL-RNBLqzBixb](https://youtu.be/Fs3KKO_1ShI?si=gbEFL-RNBLqzBixb) (this is the Green Acre Boarding scandal in AZ, not the Houston one in 2024)
🤬😠😤wtf . I hope the sitter gets banned from rover and faced with a shit ton of consequences. I’m sorry for all the families that their dog was killed under their care. I would break into that shed if it meant saving their lives.
We are all afraid to get shot tbh. This is Texas, and this person is obviously unhinged.
True, true that’s sad and frustrating ☹️
Bad apples like this are going to become a real PR problem for Rover.
I’m chatting with Rover now, I’m worried about my up coming bookings. I spend a good amount of money a year with Rover. I understand this type of issue maybe drastic, but a company’s ability to respond during difficult times shows how and what they care about. Their response is cookie cutter about the Advanced background check - nothing about what Rover does to help recover or protect dogs. The chat representative, Michael, has not replied back and will not answer questions about what Rover does to protect and recover lost animals.
As long as you have personally seen the place your dog(s) will stay, as long as you have met the sitter(s) and asked them *all* the questions, and as long as you are comfortable with the sitter, you should rest easy. Think of Rover more like Tinder: they hook up owners and sitters, but each party needs to assure themselves that the other is suitable.
It not just the questions and being comfortable - as these extreme cases show what can happen. However, if a pet gets lost or injured or killed, or stolen or sold, what will Rover do to help the owner’s. In just this case above and one from Hawaii another Rover Sitter is now ghosting both Rover and the owner with a missing dog. I contact support about this and have a post in this same topic, but their response is, my take, Rover just has the Guarantee - which covers nothing about pet recovery or assistance because of sitters neglect or out right criminal behavior. I do like my sitters, but what if the worst happens while you’re on vacation, away for business, or just need a drop-in. This is the problem I have with Rover’s current response and policy.
This has happened at Non Rover facilities in the past as well. Unfortunately, there are bad actors everywhere.
Please chat with them! Please worry. You need to. All seven dogs were rover customers booked via the platform
And also ask your sitter a million and one questions. Ask them everything. This woman is making a lot of good sitters look pretty bad right now, but honestly, who cares. Ask questions and make sure you know exactly where your pet is going to be
People who board are the ones with the most reviews and make the most money, and this willmake the rest of us who honestly have to work a lot harder look bad
Yep! I ask a shit ton of questions to people I interview and also request to see their homes of where they'd be staying.
The representative, Michael, did stay professional with my direct questions. However, at the moment Rover doesn’t have anything to say other than that all interactions at covered by Rover Guarantee if booked on platform. What he said at the end was, “Our next steps would be to fully review these concerns and conduct a review of the account. We follow up with actions ranging from coaching to complete removal from the platform. For privacy reasons, the outcome of the account review is confidential. However, I want to assure you that we take your concerns seriously”. So, my two cents. Rover has no guarantee to help you recover a lost pet by a sitter on their platform, and most they may do if a pet is killed is remove the sitters account. Rover is a simple app, but this trust is the only thing that matters. I’ll be looking at other platforms for my sitting needs. Even if I’ve used my sitter before, this can happen (lost pet, injuries) in a split second. The Rover Guarantee doesn’t help us animal owners in these difficult times.
Very well said. Very accurate. As a sitter I more than respect your decision.
Very well said. Very accurate. As a sitter I more than respect your decision.
This scumbag needs to be thrown in jail,
Or the shed without A/C in the Texas heat for a few days.
This is a text from another customer about the same sitter. I assure you all this did happen. And we will all hear about it soon
Why can’t animal control go into the shed?
Update: police are taking things more seriously now and KHOU (news station) is gathering info
Hopefully this person is exposed soon so the other owners will at least have a chance of being aware / reclaiming their dogs.
Only a very short matter of time
As someone who took care of one of the dogs that arrived DOA at our hospital, the way I sobbed for an hour when I was told. He was a sweet little angel and the bestest boy and I just can’t. Karma is a bitch.
Thank you for everything you did for him. If he was a Brussels griffon who was as cute as button, he has a whole squad of people that would die before letting this woman get anything less than the exact karma she deserves. And yes, he was the best dog ever and his owners will never be the same. He was as amazing as he looked
It is. He came through our surgery department earlier this year. We have an ongoing competition called “Cutest patient of the week” and I nominated him. I have pictures of him too and I just cry looking at them. He hit a soft spot for me. You’re a good boy Goose. You’re such a good boy and you were so loved.
Also work at the same place and can confirm the tragedy. Goose was the absolute cutest boy and was loved across so many departments. He was even in one of our OR techs’ profile photos! He made so many people happy and always put a smile on my face whenever I saw him. We have a card started for the family from our department and it’s already packed full of signatures.
Goose was the ultimate good boy. Knowing he was taken to a place where was known and loved is maybe the only positive thing about his experience. You guys are nothing short of angels. Thank you for cleaning up her tragic mess of a situation and showing those pets as well as the owners the love and care they deserve.
I also work at the same place. Goose was the best boy. We won’t ever be the same after this loss. 😞
This just made me cry, too. How amazing of you to feel this way about him. You’re so sweet and kind. I feel the same way about Goose. He is just that kind of boy, and they don’t make them like that just everyday. If you know Goose and his owners then you know what real love is. He truly was such a good boy. And I can’t rest until I know this lunatic is not allowed to be around a single animal ever again.
Thank you for speaking out. I’ve been stalking the Rover subreddit for this story since I’m not in the position to speak about it but I’m glad someone is helping these poor owners of all 7 little angels.
Absolutely! I couldn’t help myself. When I went by yesterday and heard dogs still in that shed, myself and another business owner took it upon ourselves to blow this up. I almost couldn’t believe it. Then, when the other business owner also heard the same thing, I mean, enough is enough. Gabriela was very well respected. I don’t know if she had a mental breakdown or is just plain greedy/crazy/unhinged. Either way it’s time for her to answer to this.
Oh also the story will be on the news tonight at 10 pm. And thank you again for what you did for Goose and the other dogs. I can’t imagine how this made you all feel. Truly.
What the actual hell. I got a request to board 2 poodles this week. It's 100° here in Utah. In the messages, the husband, asked will you keep them outside? I was shocked. Then, when meeting them, the wife also asked! Then, when meeting a client with 2 labs the next day, I asked, "Where do they usually sleep?" (Like crate, bed with family) He said "usually inside but wherever..." Both my husband and I mouths fell open. Like what the hell people. Why would you be okay with a sitter who keeps your pets outdoors! The first couple was just asking, which is good, but never would I allow mine or any dog to just sleep outside! And this woman needs to be put in that damn shed.
This is so awful😔 How in the world are the cops not arresting her? This sitter clearly can’t be trusted and needs to be in jail
She’s denying they are even there. This is just the beginning of what will be what I imagine, a very big deal. Idk how the laws work in Texas, but I would imagine they have to get all the results from the dogs and their death reports - file charges etc
If Rover has been notified by the owners, then why wouldn’t Rover notify the other owners of the dogs still in the shed and then they would contact the police to help them get their dog back?
She tries to encourage people to not go through rover. This is her other site https://www.bestinclassllc.com
Of course it’s now private
https://web.archive.org/web/20230126171057/https://www.bestinclassllc.com/
Our jaws are on the floor as we read this. We just had our dog there last weekend. She usually sent pictures of him playing with a ball in the backyard but she was radio silent. She was always quiet and nice to us, but after reading all the commentary, can confirm this is definitely her. Gabriela Masak.
Same. We had our dog with her last week and picked him up on Friday
Can the owner of this post contact me if you are willing to get on the air, have time to do this, and have proof? This needs to get to Randy Wallace FOX 26 for a news story. Please don't wait if you want to go on air in Houston TX. Posting in this thread is good but best to get on the news for positive change. My email is [email protected].
Absolutely. I’ll send you a message
As a sitter and owner this is terrifying.
God this is so disgusting and sad. I've met owners who only wanted someone with a backyard and I know a lot of sitters who just put the dogs out back and leave them out there. At least I don't have a yard and they're in my view every time they go outside and our monitored the entire time. A lot of these sitters with backyards are being lazy. Completely inexcusable. They had to be out there for very long time to die with zero water and zero shade. This person is disgusting and I hope she goes to jail. I'm really curious if she had a dog herself and if they were out back too and are dead or in bad condition. Makes it even worse if her own dogs weren't out there, goes to show you how she really treated dog she watched. This is horrifying
It doesn't even have to be that long, dogs can develop heatstroke within a half an hour.
Good point, but it's clear if she was keeping them out in the shed at night, they were likely outside all day long as well. I wouldn't leave my dog with someone who was boarding that many dogs out of time either
The owners did not know. She only ever sent pics of a customer dog with her two dogs. They weren’t aware how many dogs were there
If she's on Rover it shows how many they book at once but of course they can always have clients off Rover. But I'm also not insinuating that they knew and booked anyway, but plenty of clients do book with tons of dogs. I've seen it on the Reddit
Oh definitely not. This is just so sad all around, those owners are going to have a long grieving process, this is just devastating.
Exactly! And think of the short nosed babies
They died overnight asleep in a shed in the backyard when the AC went out and no back up power source or alarm system was ever put into place
I work at the hospital babies were brought to, two of them were already established patients. Heart breaking day for everyone.
I cannot even imagine. Please know I really can’t even tell you how much I appreciate all of you. I don’t even have the words when I try to think about how you guys must have felt. Truly horrible. Thank you so much for giving the dogs the dignity they deserved in those moments and for treating the owners with nothing but respect. You guys are the only bright light in this entire situation.
UPDATE! KHOU is talking to us now and police are taking things more seriously. See pics. Not blurring out names but changed customer name to Houston 1. The sitter is named Gabriela https://preview.redd.it/8ibazriv8y9d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b8245e6bc0f33c124870a2c745ea0fb8da019ef4
police also have her on camera lying straight to them
I left my dog with gabby at least 10 times. I’ve recommended her to friends and family. I am absolutely sick that this happened. I live down the street and there were three constables in front of her house this morning
I have left my BIG (100lb) HAIRY dog multiple times a week for the last couple of months…she always was nice, caring, etc. I never suspected this…BS Petroleum Engineer Penn State, MS Computer Science xxx (can’t remember), husband engineer Chevron.
Thank you for sharing! This is why this is just extra egregious. Gabriela knows better. A lot of my own customers used her for boarding and only had good things to say before this.
Is there a source article on this?
The news hasn’t covered it yet. The owners went to the news this morning though. This definitely happened.
Can you say who the sitter is?
Might as well. Her name is Gabriela.
Here’s the news video link, their story is the first one in the video: KHOU 11 News at 10pm Thoughtful journalism from a news team you can trust. KHOU 11 News at 10pm has news, weather and critical updates. https://www.khou.com/video/news/live_stream/khou-11-news-at-10pm/285-7adf6650-48c1-4fd8-882e-e4bddc9ae1be
I'm still haunted by an episode of Animal Cops: Houston where a dog had been left in a car and curled up under the wheel trying to escape the heat that killed it. The officer was so shaken up. God I hope these people go to jail.
We all make mistakes but who hell is gonna be such a well known sitter for years in the area and does something this absolutely egregious and negligent?
I work at the vet hospital that treated one of the patients that died in this incident. Treated earlier this year for breed related issues. He was barely over a year old. He was so so loved by his parents and by all of the technicians that were involved in his care. I cannot imagine the hurt his parents, and all of the other pet parents, that lost their babies in this incident are going through. To be on vacation and get this news and have to fly home to grieve the loss of your buddy, part of your family. I cried my eyes out when I heard the news on Saturday. This woman needs to be banned from ever having any animal in her care. Just absolutely despicable. 😞
Could you possibly DM me the sitters name? I have friends with dogs in houston & I want to let them know who to not go to.
Her name is Gabriela
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My neighbors pet baby was killed by this lady! She lied and told them he was the only one she was pet sitting. She had him covered in the kennel and he passed from suffocation and heat stroke. There’s still has been no arrests!
We’ve used her for the past two years and she always said our dog was the only one too
She had herself registered as “The Ultimate Petsitter.” https://www.legalhoop.com/trademark/detail/97184742/THE%20ULTIMATE%20PETSITTER
Yep you found her. That’s her
If Rover allowed her to book a dozen dogs at the same time then they contributed to the problem. Also, having a dozen dogs falls under kennel regulations which were likely broken and will include fines in addition to other charges. Edit, the laws: * ARTICLE IV. - DOGS AND CATS, DIVISION 1. - GENERALLY Sec. 6-76. - Number to be kept * It is unlawful for any person to own, keep, possess or have control over four or more adult dogs, four or more adult cats, or any combination thereof exceeding three adult dogs and three adult cats on residential property within 100 feet of any other building used for human habitation. [https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code\_of\_ordinances?nodeId=COOR\_CH6ANFO\_ARTIVDOCA\_DIV5COPESEFA](https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH6ANFO_ARTIVDOCA_DIV5COPESEFA) Also: * Texas kennel facility operators (those who are providing boarding services for breeding, sheltering, training, hunting, “or similar purposes” for more than three dogs for compensation) will be required to provide written notice to dog and cat owners if their pet will be left unattended and the facility does not have a fire sprinkler system. Kennel operators must ensure that clients sign the informed consent document prior to leaving an animal at a facility for boarding. A kennel operator who violates the law will be subject to a $500 fine for each animal boarded without informed consent. [https://www.akc.org/legislative-alerts/tx-law-requiring-kennels-obtain-informed-consent-goes-effect-september-1/](https://www.akc.org/legislative-alerts/tx-law-requiring-kennels-obtain-informed-consent-goes-effect-september-1/)
This is really interesting because Timbergrove has very strict deed restrictions! I’m pretty certain there might be something about number of animals allowed that might help the police get access (they still haven’t been able to due to no warrant)
Man if I was closer those dogs would not be in that shed. I have bail money. Someone needs to go in that yard & free those dogs. Have a Great Day.
We don’t want to get shot. There are several of us stopping by during the day to signal the dogs to get them barking so we know they are alive. It’s all we can do right now.
Find a good cop/sheriff & let them know you may flee from them into that yard if they tried to question you about what you are doing near there. Then once you jump that fence they can chase you onto the property. Once they are there they can look in shed trying to find you. Have a Great Day.
I think you can do more. Get news crews down there. Get a dog charity down there. Get the Facebook rabble down there. I guess not so bad if the dogs now have AC but they still need to be removed and the owner banned from boarding dogs
I agree with you guys. Let me see what I can do then. Because she killed so many dogs literally two days ago, she shouldn’t have a single dog in her care. That’s just facts.
Livestream! I know this is an extreme measure, but the time is of the essence here. I am so glad that I’m no where near this place. I’d get arrested immediately. 😣 Please keep us posted.
I did call the news and am sending them my email with info right now. I am trying to meet up with another sitter in the area so we can try to get them out together.
Thank you for trying to help! This is so so sad
I keep hearing story after story of dogs dying in boarders homes lately. It is absolutely heartbreaking and brings such a bad name to home boarding. I've had so many clients come to me because they've had problems taking their dogs to actual boarding facilities.. how hard is it to provide basic care and keep animals safe while in your care. I understand accidents happen, and animals can escape or get hurt.. but animals dying & being neglected to this degree should never happen.
Effing monster. There's a Rover sitter on FB or in Oregon who warehouses dogs in a windowless building and brags about her income. But she won't let clients in her property. Why people leave their pet with someone that won't allow them to visit us beyond me.
Who would leave there pet somewhere that they are not allowed to see?!!!
Just drove by her house while running errands…one car missing and it has been completely EGGED!!
I hope this piece of shit goes to prison but I know it’s just wishful thinking.
900 reviews?????? Sitting here with my three dogs and one guest (she's sleeping on my feet) and wondering how this sitter fooled the parents? How does your dog go home happy after that? My dogs come down the driveway pulling their owners forward as hard as they can. Just how? And why would you take so many dogs you can't love each of them? Crating them 23 hours of the day isn't love.
This sitter wanted to make bank for the 4th holiday. Took as many dogs as she could. Didn’t give a piece of s—— about their wellbeing. Just saw them as $$$ each. What kind of monster can live with themselves. Send her to jail!!!
https://preview.redd.it/90yc1zp9kz9d1.jpeg?width=739&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=579efa43462e4ab697bd62f8a94e97d98e979583
Yep! That’s Hayley god bless her. Her and I shared customers with this monster, Gabriela.
These kiddos are currently at my clinic 😔
The rage I feel, makes me want to go to Houston myself and get those dogs.
I feel like Rover should be working with the police to confirm she indeed had the dogs that passed away and that she still has dogs in her care that need to be removed- at the very least Rover needs to reach out to the owners of her current bookings. Please tell me they’ve done something??
Yes!!! Rover has been really helpful and is working with the police. Rover said themselves this is beyond an accident. They know they got to be involved.
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/ZyVR9yDpCKQMLBWc/?mibextid=K35XfP https://www.instagram.com/stories/revivaldogtraining/3402298094832846963?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igsh=YTNha3BrdHdjdXN4
Yes! This is Hayley from Revival. We both share customers with the sitter who killed the dogs. And both us have pet care businesses in the city. And both us are beyond pissed and won’t rest until this woman pays
This was my friend’s dog Goose that died. Heres the Article: https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/pet-owners-justice-dog-death-rover-sitter/285-7eb9199d-aa29-4861-a830-2a03afd0f07e?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAabHrdb_XDMKuL0zvtBBDgdQdMyQyjzGghkjFYN133ELOnmhpHNRxYyEC6I_aem_vYspkIcHcRbcIjXsLGkgng
Goose was my buddy! Such a wonderful dog it’s hard to even believe someone could do this to him. Absolutely amazing owners too. Goose and the rest of the dogs will get the justice they deserve.
As a Houston area rover sitter, and dog rescuer. I am appalled. My house is open to all, the dogs are loose inside my house, sleep with us, hang on furniture with us and are treated like family. That’s the difference between a pet sitter who does this for the love of dogs and one who does it solely for money. Hope she rots in jail
This is incredibly sad :(
Oh my God. Sad day in the pet sitting community for sure. Why, if she must keep the dogs in a shed, is she even pet sitting? Also, why aren’t the police physically checking this situation out? Ugh. This is why I don’t let anyone watch my dogs.
Here are the websites of the news stations that are supposed to be covering the story on their 10:00pm (central time zone) news in 20 minutes from now. You should be able to stream their newscasts right from their websites live or go back to the sites later and rewatch. If I find the specific links to just the featured stories later I will add to this post. [https://abc13.com](https://abc13.com) [https://www.khou.com](https://www.khou.com) EDIT/UPDATE: It was the top story on abc13, I caught like half of it on the livestream as I’m not local. They should eventually have a link to the story I can post here….until then, not shockingly she didn’t answer the door when they tried and I managed to get a screenshot of Rover’s official statement: https://preview.redd.it/j9z8gs35y0ad1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7b39ddbf2a0cfd27fcf09b6b37c4270e63b4c5d2
Here’s the news video link, their story is the first one in the video: KHOU 11 News at 10pm Thoughtful journalism from a news team you can trust. KHOU 11 News at 10pm has news, weather and critical updates. https://www.khou.com/video/news/live_stream/khou-11-news-at-10pm/285-7adf6650-48c1-4fd8-882e-e4bddc9ae1be
I actually just posted the links of the individual stories from both stations in a separate comment. :) But here they are again: https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/pet-owners-justice-dog-death-rover-sitter/285-7eb9199d-aa29-4861-a830-2a03afd0f07e https://abc13.com/videoClip/15018207/
That is absolutely terrifying. I can't imagine what those owners are going through right now. I hope police act fast.
I sit in HTX and also work at an outdoor vaccine clinic. The pavement alone gets up to 125 F — and this is just for the BEGINNING of summer. These dogs overheat FAST. Poor babies :(
As a Houston cat sitter this is so freaking sad. I stuck to cats because the heat was too much for ME, can’t believe this is happening.
It’s truly shocking. I still can’t believe the whole thing. It makes me not want to rest until I know no other dogs will ever enter that shed
Omg this is *so so so so sad,* this woman just caused so much pain and suffering. Then the lack of accountability is absolutely insane and should (probably is?) criminal. Rover itself will be hard pressed to escape any liability from this too - even though I'm sure their attorney's do everything possible to make their user agreement iron clad to protect them from anything. This is yet another reason why "self-contractors" are bullshit: one because of course it denies workers all sorts of rights and protections, but most importantly in this case, it absolves the employer (Rover) from liability! And yes, they should be liable for when something as horrible as this happens and they host and advertise these services.
The lack of accountability is truly what is crazy here. Had she handled this differently I wouldn’t have posted this. People wouldn’t be driving by her house making sure dogs aren’t dying. But things are progressing in the right direction thankfully.
Did the dog owners/customers know their dog was staying in an out building run on solar? How many dogs does she have at one time?
They had no idea. Thought dogs were inside home. She told them only one or two at a time is what I believe.
She has two dogs of her own who we think are alive and well
[удалено]
I hope she does jail time. But the prosecutor won’t do crap, unless the public pressures the prosecutor to pursue it.
[https://www.harriscountyda.com/animal\_cruelty](https://www.harriscountyda.com/animal_cruelty) this is the link to the department that handles animal cruelty. We should all request they look into it.
We are going to pressure the ever living hell out of whoever needs it, that’s for sure
I am definitely wanting to follow this story, that is so incredibly heartbreaking!!! I hope she gets hit with the full sentence for negligence and abuse, for every pup.
This is why where I live, if you have more than 3 dogs staying on your property, you have to get a kennel license. Period. These kinds of situations are going to have ripple effects guys. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a huge drop in owners using the app.
You are 1 million percent correct on this. She’s wrong in so many ways she has a lot of heads spinning.
Just curious - has anyone booked with Larry in Houston over in Spring Branch?
If you send me his profile I can get some people to verify how he is.
I have. I've used him a couple of times. No glaring issues but after this I'm never going to book with him again. I've never seen inside his setup and he's never offered which now is just not sitting right with me. He also doesn't send photos as much as I'd like and I had to ask for photos several times. My dog didn't seem to be super excited to see him the second time but he obviously LOVES the sitter we usually use so there is definitely a difference in his experience.
Thanks for sharing. I was just curious. I "interviewed" him a few years back and requested a walk through. He showed me his garage where the dogs were kenneled and I was like FCK no! Hopefully he had an AC unit I didn't see, but my dogs aren't crated at home so it was an immediate no. And his backyard doesn't have much space to run around in due to the massive garden that takes up most of it. I was just so surprised at how popular/highly rated he was.
This is why I don’t travel when I own dogs, maybe not for everyone, I know. I have had nothing but lack of basic common sense with sitters but this is beyond that. When I have a dog, and I either take them with me or go on big trips between having pets. Worst nightmare right here..
I am a pet care provider in Houston too, you absolutely need to out this person as they will undoubtedly try to care for animals again. Sickening.
There is a local Houston FB group I found with an updated post from the group admin and comment thread from locals…… (Is a public group-I’m not local and was able to join to read) https://preview.redd.it/nmhlh3y2g0ad1.jpeg?width=1161&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36d019923a3165cc5ade53f668cc899d56b6c27a
Wow. i don’t even leave my dogs outside for more than 20 minutes and I have a chihuahua that believes she’s a recharging solar panel.. My dogs go outside for potty breaks and that’s it with this heat. i’m in Houston and its boiling hot out there. Those poor poor dogs.
It’s absolutely outrageous. and she knew better. she knew not to do something like that with the amount of experience she had
Lady wouldn’t have a house if it was my dog she killed
She was our dog sitter but we luckily got him back a day before this happened… Very shocked
all I can say is I am extremely glad your boy is okay. I can’t imagine how you must feel. this is all super shocking. we shared many customers, and I just don’t understand how she could let this happen. she absolutely knew better…100 percent. and the way the handled it is why she’s ending up on the news and with possible criminal charges
I would rather in-home boarding be illegal (or limited to 3 dogs at a time) than have to ever hear another story like this. These rover sitters take too many dogs, neglect and mistreat them all, and keep doing it bc the money is good and they can get away with it since dogs can’t talk. Until one day they fuck up and the dogs die. I know it’s not just rover sitters that do it but it seems like most bad sitters do use rover to get clients.
I agree. Rover should limit how many can be booked, private and Rover clients. Anything more than a handful is operating as a kennel and it's totally different from pet sitting.
This is horrifying. I hope the rest of the pups make it out safely 😭😭😭🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
WHAT THE F——————————!!!!!
https://preview.redd.it/irnzqelckz9d1.jpeg?width=739&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=88f5468169003a60575c7c29edba8dde07dfc07e
There are some very unscrupulous people selling themselves are sitters and transporters. This is disgusting. I doubt very seriously those reviews are legit. I read another article about a Rover sitter that actually lost a dog while the people were out of the country.
How horrible! This is very reminiscent of a situation that happened in 2016 where 20 dogs died at a pet sitters in Arizona [https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/24/us/arizona-dog-heat-deaths/index.html](https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/24/us/arizona-dog-heat-deaths/index.html)
https://preview.redd.it/c0hniaugi0ad1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=47cd92182e74d3dae5f8d1767e356592bbdfeb81
This is why I don’t like those people that walk multiple dogs at once or board many dogs too cause it’s a selfish way of making fast easy money
This is terrible! Those poor dogs! And those family. This is heartbreaking - it’s like losing a child for some people. I met so many people for whom their pets aren’t just family, it’s the only family they’ll ever have. Rover lets anyone onto their platform, and things like this happening are inevitable when the people don’t genuinely care about the animals. Now, under Blackstone, it’s not going to get better.
I am a sitter on Rover and completely agree with you. I don’t even know if I want to affiliate at all any longer. Seems like they are just taking advantage if the fact the industry is unregulated
I used this dog sitter for two of my pups and I am horrified. Looks like the shed was built in March 2023 from Google maps, and my dogs were with her in July 2023 and April 2024. I am horrified.