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Pay vet bill because of fly bites?

I took a dog for a walk to a county park near my home. Dogs on leashes are permitted at the park. Afterwards, I bathed the dog as a courtesy to the owner. The next day, the owner told me she was concerned about 3 bites on the dog's belly and went to the vet to have the bites inspected. The vet said the bites were from flies commonly found in nearby parks (not fleas). The owner was displeased and told me I should not have taken her dog to the county park. I reimbursed the owner for the vet visit. Going forward, I will ask owners for permission before taking their dogs for a walk in a county park. I was wondering whether you agree with my decision to reimburse the owner for the vet visit since I did not ask permission in advance of taking her dog to the county park for a walk.

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Curious, was the vet concerned? Did the dog need any kind of medical care as a result? My answer to your question about reimbursement would be dependent on whether the vet said it was no big deal.

Karen R.

The owner did not say whether the vet was concerned. The vet issued meds for pain and lethargy.

Eric D.

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Deb A.

Yes, for your predicament, I think you used good judgement and customer service skills in offering to reimburse the vet expenses. If you had not been paid through Rover, you could have authorized them to credit her that amount directly from the total booked fee. Your quick response should mitigate an otherwise scathing review which the owner could have posted online at Rover and many other social media sites, as well as word of mouth. Also, it may result in more long term business from this client.

At the meet & greet, I think it's essential to discuss all aspect of care and preferences, including where walks will occur. Nearly all of the pampered pooches I know will not go to dog parks, with their family or a sitter.

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Thank you for your comment and advice

Eric D.

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Cindy & Stephen G.

Lesson learned about taking others' people dogs to parks-sorry you had to learn it this way.

That said, while it's nice you paid the client's vet bill, her description sounds ridiculous. Flies? Why would a dog need pain meds for 3 fly bites? And lethargy because of it?

It's too late now, but I would have perhaps offered to reimburse her after speaking with her vet/their office to confirm that. There's no way I'd take the client's word for it, and if the client is legit they'd have no problem with me doing so.

Lesson from this..don't take clients' words at face value. We're dealing with dogs/owners, but business is business.

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Pay vet bill because of fly bites?

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