Dog day care suspends service as officers investigate video, threat to break dog’s neck
Following backlash from a video showing an employee picking up a dog by its collar and threatening it, the Charlotte Dog Resort has temporarily suspended operations, the owner told the Charlotte Observer Monday.
The video, which was posted by Isabella Anzivino on Saturday, appears to show an unidentified woman lifting a dog into the air by its collar and carry the dog away from other dogs before dropping it on its tail.
“I will break your f------- neck do you understand me?” the woman is heard saying on the video.
Anzivino said she has worked at the boarding and dog day care facility since October but said she quit after she posted the video.
Officers with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Animal Care and Control Division are investigating, said Melissa Knicely, spokeswoman.
John Carlin, an owner of the Charlotte Dog Resort, said Monday the facility has suspended operations until they complete a “thorough review” of the incident and personnel involved.
“We are aware of the video released on social media regarding an event at our facility and find it troublesome and disappointing. The employee involved has been an exemplary dog caretaker and owner her whole life and this action does not reflect our experience with her as an employee,” Carlin said in a statement on behalf of the Charlotte Dog Resort.
“The highest concern for Charlotte Dog Resort always has been and will be the care of both our client’s pets as well as the safety of our employees,” he said.
Until the review is completed, Carlin said the Charlotte Dog Resort is in the process of returning all dogs in its care to their owners and is not accepting any dogs.
Reached by phone, Anzivino said the video was filmed last Thursday by a friend who hanging out at the business while Charlotte was enduring severe weather and a tornado warning. Anzivino says her dog is seen in the video but was not involved in the incident. The friend originally meant to film Anzivino’s dog, Athena, when she caught the incident on video.
Anzivino said she posted the video and reported the incident to Animal Care and Control because she was concerned for the dog’s welfare.
“I knew if I didn’t report it, it was going to eat me alive every day,” she said.
This story was originally published February 10, 2020 at 4:06 PM.
