BALTIMORE — An energetic French Bulldog, two-year-old Jada died suddenly when she went into pre-mature labor last week, and her heart-broken owner, Darrine Timpson, paid $250 to have her cremated.
He says a business called ‘loving care pet’ picked up the pet and dropped off her ashes the following day.
“He did just that, but 20 minutes after he left, I received the call from Baltimore City Animal Control that she was found on the side of the road with seven other deceased dogs,” said Timpson.
Eight animals total, which turned out of be five dogs, a cat and a rabbit, which had all been dumped near the intersection of Frederick Avenue and Boswell Road.
Jada and another dog contained microchips, which led officers to Timpson.
“For a second, I thought this was a game,” said Timpson, “but then I’m like, ‘How many people could know such intricate details like her nails being painted pink and stuff of that nature?’ So it was pretty serious when I got the call.”
And a pretty serious breach of trust, since obviously, Jada’s ashes, which had been delivered to her owner could not have been hers.
“He used a tagging system to guarantee the process of cremation—-that you get the proper ashes back, and this is what the ashes look like,” said Timpson, as he pulled a small baggie out of a remembrance box, which bears Jada’s picture on it, “I don’t work in cremation. I’m not sure, but I know it’s not my dog.”
Word of the discarded animals and duped pet owners also came as a surprise to the business they paid to perform the service.
Loving Care Pet Owner Rodney Ward says he paid a man from the crematorium who was down on his luck to do the work trying to help him out.
“We outsourced these particular cremations and when we outsourced them, this is the result that we got,” said Ward.
That man also would have had access to ashes to play off as those of the discarded animals.
“He hired someone new. They’ve been working a week. Just excuses,” said Timpson.
So far, about half of the duped pet owners have received refunds, and Ward is left trying to save his business from becoming the biggest victim of all, as many of the hundreds of pet owners they have served over three years are left wondering if they really got what they paid for.
“We stand by the service that we give to each family,” said Ward, “We stand by the service, above and beyond service that we provide even with our funeral services that we’ve provided for pets. It’s just hurtful that even after all of this that we have this negative stigma on us right now.”
Animal Control falls under the Baltimore City Health Department, which told us that a different pet service has agreed to cremate the discarded pets at no cost to their owners as the investigation into the illegal dumping continues.
Baltimore dog owner speaks out after learning the true fate of his dog
