Petco agrees to US$1.75 million settlement

Petco Animal Supplies Inc. agreed to pay US$1.75 million to settle a case involving the overcharging of customers and mistreatment of pets, according to Jan Goldsmith, San Diego city attorney.
Petco did not admit liability in the case, which was prosecuted by Goldsmith’s office and other district attorneys representing five California counties, including San Diego where the company is based.
The case originated from state and county inspections of Petco stores from 2005 to 2008, showing that Petco’s animal cages were not adequately cleaned and maintained. In some stores, sick animals were not identified and removed from habitats on the sales floor, according to a report from Goldsmith’s office. Petco failed to remove expired price tags from store shelves, resulting in customers potentially being overcharged. The report also says that the company failed to properly train its employees on the weighing and charging of bulk sales items such as dog food.