Henderson City Council nixes reopening of problem pet store

The Henderson City Council refused Tuesday to allow the reopening of a pet store that was shut down after animal control officers found puppies in cramped cages with no water.

Pet Pros owner Scott Gardner said the store had 16 employees and had been open for 11 years. The city’s business license division ordered it closed Jan. 15, and on Tuesday, the council voted 5-0 to deny Gardner’s appeal.

“This is a catastrophe for me,” Gardner said afterward.

Describing the problems at the Eastern Avenue store as isolated, he said he has four years and $500,000 left on his lease and could be forced to declare bankruptcy. Gardner has spent 40 years in the pet business, including 26 in the Las Vegas area.

Gardner was cited in July for having dogs in crowded conditions and failing to provide medical records. He paid a $100 fine.

On Tuesday, Gardner admitted the July problems were his fault and said he hadn’t realized the city changed its law on pet stores a few years ago. Under state law, space requirements only apply to puppies once they turn 6 months old. But under Henderson law, it’s 6 weeks.

In late October, two city animal control officers went to the store after a complaint. In an affidavit, Officer Danielle Harney wrote that she found five puppies in cages with no water in their bottles and six puppies who didn’t have enough room. A German shepherd and a boxer puppy were being kept in one 2-foot-by-4-foot cage, but by law they should have had more than 31 square feet of room.

When told of the problems, Gardner said, “We need to get rid of the complainers,” according to Harney’s affidavit.

On Tuesday, Gardner said the animal control officers came at the worst possible time, the morning after the store got a new group of puppies.

A kennel technician failed to show up, Gardner said, so staff were scrambling to get the animals situated before the store opened. Gardner said the problems the officers saw wouldn’t have existed had they walked in 10 minutes later.

The city attorney’s office filed 12 misdemeanor charges, which are still pending in Henderson Municipal Court, said Kathy Baker, the city animal control administrator.

In early January, officers responded to another complaint and wrote that they found a sick Boston terrier puppy and another dog that was being treated with antibiotics. Both should have been isolated but instead were with other dogs, Officer Raul Clemente wrote.

“When I hear something like this, it’s heartbreaking to me,” Gardner told the council. “It’s not the way we run a business, plain and simple.”

But Mayor Andy Hafen said the allegations were “pretty grievous,” and Councilwoman Debra March said Gardner was to blame for the problems.