Ring doorbell footage shocked an Arizona couple following a bizarre interaction with their dog sitter, suspected of drinking and trashing their Phoenix home between Dec. 14 and Christmas.
Brooke Gambino and Mohammad Kabiri were mortified when they learned their dog sitter, found on Rover, a pet sitter app, apparently allowed dogs Gustav and Bernardo to run wild, destroying the house and endangering themselves, according to 12 News.
Video showed the dogs running out the front door into the street as an indifferent dog sitter, supposedly well-reviewed, watched, apparently with little concern, the outlet reported. The couple came home from their 10-day trip to Costa Rica to a stained coffee table, a stained bed and a mess of trash, shoes, car keys and other items strewn around the house.
Arizona couple alleges dog sitter was drunk, let pooches loose as they received photo of wrong pet https://t.co/WlpaSmOCtt via @nypost
— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) January 6, 2024
“We really didn’t give her much responsibility, aside from feeding them and being with them and making sure they didn’t escape,” Gambino said. “This is a disaster.”
The couple’s concern began when the dog sitter sent a picture of a different dog when asked how their pets, who Gambino said are “very special to us,” were doing, according to the outlet.
“Her response was like, ‘That’s Tess of course’ as if I was the one that was in the wrong. I’m like, ‘No, no, I know, that’s not my dog,'” Gambino said.
Footage also showed the dog sitter call the pets by the wrong names after they disappeared outside for at least 30 minutes, Gambino recalled, according to the outlet. The dogs came back home on their own. (RELATED: Woman Swept Away Under Ice After Jumping Into River To Save Family Dog)
The pet sitter, who reportedly got herself drunk, left the dogs home alone for 23 hours at a time, crated them for three days straight, Gambino said after reviewing the video. She and Kabiri said the sitter abruptly told them she had to go to the hospital and that her boyfriend would continue watching their dogs. The boyfriend barely visited the house, the video revealed.
Rover said the incident was an “unusual experience” and that they will provide the couple a full refund, the outlet reported. Gambino acknowledged that “this app can only vet someone to such a capacity.”
“Our 24/7 team is carefully reviewing all of the details of this truly unusual experience,” Rover said in a statement. “In the meantime, we will be providing Mr. Kabiri with a full refund, and work with him on other ways we can support him and his pets.”