A dispute has erupted over the death of a dog at a dog training school in Fuzhou
At a time when pets are increasingly becoming an indispensable member of many families, the pet-related service industry is also booming. However, a recent incident related to pet training in Fuzhou has cast a shadow over the seemingly prosperous industry.
Ms. Ye, a Fuzhou resident, is the central figure in this incident. In November 2024, while brushing Tiktok in her spare time, she was deeply attracted by a series of wonderful dog training videos released by Fuzhou Baylor Dog Training School. In the video, a dog is well-behaved and obedient, accurately executing instructions such as sitting, lying, shaking hands, and even playing skateboards and going to the toilet at a fixed point, which is full of skills. This made Ye so excited that she fully expected her two pet dogs, Dudu and Dian Dian, to become so intelligent. So, on November 20, Ms. Ye sent two dogs to the Baylor Dog training School in Cangshan District, starting a one-month training trip, the training cost a total of 6,500 yuan, of which “spot” for primary training, “Du Du” is the main skateboard skills training.
But no one expected that tragedy would strike quietly. On the morning of December 9, Ms. Ye was awakened by the terrible news – the accidental death of 19-month-old Dudu. Distraught Ms. Ye and her family immediately rushed to the dog training school, but the scene in front of them was disappointing. There was no monitoring equipment installed at the school site, and it was impossible to restore the final moments of “dudu” before his death. Subsequently, they took “dudu” to the hospital for examination, but unfortunately, the doctor through B-ultrasound and hand observation, did not find that the dog had obvious trauma, and could not identify the exact cause of death. Considering that the autopsy required shaving and surgery on the whole body of the dog, Ms. Ye did not have the heart to finally choose to cremate “Dudu”, and the cremation cost was borne by the dog training school.
Then, around the issue of compensation, the two sides have reached an impasse. The dog training school proposed that in accordance with the contract, it was willing to compensate a bichon skewer of the same breed as “Dudu” and refund the tuition fee of “Dudu” of 3,000 yuan. But Ye was not satisfied and insisted that the school refund the entire 6,500 yuan tuition fee for the two dogs. Ms. Ye complained that after nearly a month of training, the training results of “Dian Dian” were not satisfactory, only learned a simple “lying” command, sitting, rolling and other skills are still no progress.
On January 10, the reporter went to the Fuzhou Baylor Dog Training School in Qingfu Village, Cangshan District, where the incident occurred. The scene is rather deserted, the school’s door sign has disappeared, although there are a few dogs in the field, but no staff figure. Subsequently, the reporter contacted the school superintendent Mr. Fan by telephone. Mr. Fan informed that the school had recently moved to Niuxiang Village, Huanxi Town. However, according to the business license provided by it, the school’s business premises are registered in Lingtou Village, Shoushan Township, Jin ‘an District. This situation also raises questions about the standardization of school management.
Speaking of Dudu’s accidental death, Mr. Fan expressed great regret. He stressed that the school has always attached great importance to communication with parents, and has set up a wechat group for this purpose, which sends videos of dog training and daily activities to parents almost every day. The night before Dudu’s death, the school also broadcast live with Dudu, and specially invited parents to watch, and Dudu did not show any abnormal behavior at that time. Until the morning of December 9, when the staff went to check the status of “Dudu” and “Dian Dian” as usual, they found that “Dudu” had unfortunately passed away. Mr. Fan described: “At that time we carefully checked, ‘Dudu’ surface did not have any signs of trauma, there was no vomit at the scene, only a stool, it looks normal.” After finding that Dudu had no chance of rescue, we contacted the parents immediately and offered to send Dudu to the hospital for more detailed examination, but the parents refused the autopsy.”
As for the compensation, Mr Fan explained that since Ms Yip could not produce a valid receipt to prove the exact value of Dudu, the school could only compensate a Bichon Kebabs of the same breed and refund Dudu’s tuition fees as agreed in the contract. As for Ms. Ye’s request to refund the tuition fees of the two dogs, the school believes that it is difficult to accept, and hopes to solve the dispute through legal channels, so that a fair ruling.
When a dog dies unexpectedly in a dog training school, what responsibility should the school take? The reporter consulted Shen Zhanchang of Fujian Mintian Law Firm of Fujian Lawyer Haidu public welfare Group for this purpose. Lawyer Shen pointed out that from the legal point of view, Ms. Ye sent her pet to the dog training school for training, and the two sides have actually formed a service contract relationship. Assuming that the pet was in good health when Ms. Ye handed it over to the dog training school, the dog training school is obligated to return the pet to Ms. Ye in good condition at the end of the training. Today, the death of a pet at a dog training school, and the failure of the dog training school to provide valid evidence that the pet’s death was not related to its own, has constituted a fundamental breach of contract. According to Article 563 of the Civil Code, Ms. Ye has the right to terminate the contract and ask the dog training school to refund the 3,000 yuan spent on training Dudu, the pet that died.
In addition, since the dog training school has constituted a fundamental breach of contract, according to Article 577 of the Civil Code, Ms. Ye can not only ask for the refund of the tuition fee, but also the right to ask the dog training school to compensate for the corresponding losses and bear the responsibility for the breach of contract. The loss here covers the cost of the pet itself (if the exact value cannot be proved, it is calculated at the market price for the same dog), as well as the actual costs incurred, such as the cost of the pet’s cremation.
Shen also reminded that at present, the domestic pet training industry still lacks a unified standard, and only a few institutions hold professional qualification certificates. As a result, the quality of pet training schools on the market varies. Moreover, because pets cannot express themselves in words, their learning effects are difficult to quantify. Therefore, when choosing a pet training school, pet owners must fully communicate with the training side, clarify the specific degree and quality requirements of the training, and sign a detailed and rigorous contract on the basis of consensus between the two sides, in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of themselves and their pets.
The death of a dog in Fuzhou is not only an isolated case, it has sounded the alarm for the majority of pet owners, but also triggered the society to think about the norms and supervision of the pet training industry. It is hoped that through this incident, the pet training industry can be promoted in a more healthy and orderly development.
Related topics
- Tragic Flood Claims Lives of Dogs at Washington, D.C. Doggy…
- Dog-Friendly Ice Cream Van Delights UK Pets
- Debate Ignites Over Alleged Dog Smuggling into ‘No Dogs Allowed’…
