The owner of a missing Jersey City dog that went missing after being in the care of a pet sitter made it to a veterinarian’s office last night, but unfortunately died a short time later.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“At around 6:30 pm we received a phone call that Mac has been brought into the vet. After rushing down to the vet we were informed that Mac had unfortunately passed away,” Diego Chaves wrote in a viral Facebook post on Monday.
“Please do not take this as a sign to harass or threaten the sitter. For now we just ask for time to mourn over the loss of our Mac. Once again I cannot thank everyone enough for all the help and support we’ve received and we are sorry that we could not update with good news.”
While reports that Mac had gone missing began surfacing on Tuesday, people were initially largely unaware of the Mini Goldendoodle’s passing since Chaves’ Facebook was mostly private.
Yesterday, Chaves started a GoFundMe page and already shattered the $8,000 goal, raising $8,836 as of 3:22 p.m.
“Please help us in figuring out the events that led to the passing of our sweet boy, Mac, so we can ensure no one else has to go through this pain. All extra funds will be donated to local animal shelters, in Mac’s honor, to help dogs in need.”
According to an email shared by Chaves, Mac had been left with the Posh Pet Service over the weekend and she claimed that the dog unexpectedly jumped out of her car while she was dropping off another person’s pet.
“Yesterday when I opened by car door to drop off a dog on the way back to my apartment, mac [sic] got out of the car and he ran away … I looked all day everywhere I thought he would be or go, the parks, dog parks, everywhere nearby and everything but I couldn’t find him I am so sorry I feel terrible … ”
The Posh Pet Service is based out of Cliffside Park, according to their Facebook page, though their listed phone number does not work. The reviews are overwhelmingly negative and accuses the owner of stealing pets.
“STEALS AND ABUSES DOGS!!!! disgusting human being(s) working for this service that belong in JAIL,” Gina Ecke wrote on July 6th.
ABC 7 reports that police are investigating the incident, which drew the attention of various groups in Bayonne, Hoboken, and Jersey City.
The Mile Square City will be holding a candlelight vigil for Mac tomorrow at Church Square Park at 7 p.m.
Editor’s note: This story was updated with information regarding a GoFundMe page for Mac.
