Bowie family demands answers after 2-year-old dog dies at boarding facility

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD. - A Bowie family is searching for answers after their 2-year-old Bernedoodle died while staying at a boarding facility in Anne Arundel County.

The Parkin family says they left Max and another family dog at Dogwood Acres Pet Retreat in Davidsonville on May 21 while they traveled to South Africa. Nine days later, they received devastating news: Max had been rushed to an emergency veterinarian and died shortly afterward.

Now, the family is questioning what happened during the dog’s final days and whether warning signs may have been missed.

What they're saying:

"I left a super healthy two-year-old dog, and that’s what I expected when I came back," Owner Neil Parkin said. 

"It’s really about the information gap between Wednesday and the time he died," Brianna Parkin added. "It’s heartbreaking."

The family spoke exclusively with FOX 5 D.C. alleging there are gaps in the facility’s records in the days leading up to Max's death and says they are seeking a clearer understanding of his condition before he became critically ill.

"How did he go from playful, some soft stools, to lethargic and critical in the ER?" Neil Parkin asked.

Dogwood Acres disputes the family’s concerns and says staff communicated regularly with the family throughout Max’s stay.

According to management, staff first noticed that Max had a decreased appetite and diarrhea several days before his death and discussed those issues with the family. The facility says employees continued monitoring the dog and did not observe signs of a medical emergency the evening before he died.

Management told FOX 5 that staff noticed Max appeared less energetic and had more diarrhea the following morning and planned to have him evaluated by a veterinarian. However, they say his condition deteriorated rapidly, prompting an emergency trip to a veterinary hospital.

According to Dogwood Acres, veterinarians informed staff that Max was suffering from a serious medical condition described as hemorrhagic pneumonia caused by a streptococcal infection.

"It’s just a painful experience that I don’t think we could have prevented and certainly that we did not cause," Jill Schellenschlager with Dogwood Acres Pet Retreat told FOX 5. 

Founder Audrey Reichardt said the dog’s reported illness can progress quickly.

"Unfortunately, based on the eventual presumed diagnosis, part of that illness is a very quick progression and a very high mortality rate," she said.

Dogwood Acres, which has been in business for nearly 30 years, says employees are heartbroken by what happened and believe staff followed appropriate procedures throughout Max’s stay.

What's next:

The Parkin family says they are awaiting final necropsy results and hope those findings will provide additional answers about what led to the sudden death of their beloved dog.

At this time, the final cause of death has not been officially determined, and the necropsy remains pending.