A woman in claims her eight-year-old Yorkshire terrier named Bella died in October while in the care of a dog walker working for the beleaguered app Wag.
Angela Composto’s beloved pet yorkie puppy doesn’t eat much has become the 15th dog to have died, or to have been lost or stolen, while being looked after by employees of the celebrity-backed service, which has been billed as ‘ for dogs.’
According to attorney Susan Chana Lask, who is representing Composto and who previously sued Wag on behalf of other clients, on October 20, Wag walker known only as Hannah took the woman’s two dogs, Bella and a three-year-old Cavalier King Charles named Chloe, for a morning walk in Miramar.
Angela Composto, a marketing executive from Florida, says her eight-year-old Yorkshire terrier, Bella (pictured right next to Chloe the Cavalier King Charles), died in October while in the care of a walker working for the app Wag
Composto’s Ring camera shows Hannah the walker taking the woman’s pet on a morning walk on October 20 in Miramar, Florida
Hannah returns 31 minutes later, carrying Bella’s limp body in her arm
The dog walker sent Composto this message, saying her pups had a ‘great walk,’ but noted that Bella took a fall while running
As Composto’s Ring doorbell camera shows, Hannah returned from the walk about 30 minutes later, leading Chloe on a leash while holding Bella’s limp body under her arm.
Hannah then sent Composto a ‘Wag Report Card’ through the app, which indicated that Bella and Chloe had covered 1.42miles over the course of 31 minutes, during which time they relieved themselves.
Hannah wrote to the owner that her two pooches ‘had a great walk,’ but noted that Bella ‘took a fall’ after Chloe ran and chased a bird and ‘jolted us.’
‘I m [sic] putting them back into the crate but will stay a while to make sure [Bella] s [sic] ok,’ Hannah stated.
The message included a photo showing the two seemingly healthy pets with their tongues hanging out.
A necropsy later determined Bella had suffered a trauma to the head and leg
When Composto reviewed her doorbell camera footage, she saw Hannah leave her house six minutes later, despite her promise to stay ‘a while’ to check up on the Yorkie, according to the , which first reported on the story.
Wag then contacted Composto, who works in marketing and was out of town, and said that another walker was being sent to her home.
The second dog walker arrived at 10.17am and found the eight-year-old Bella dead in her crate.
In late October, Composto had a necropsy performed on Bella, which found that the tiny terrier had suffered trauma to the left side of her skull and her left hind leg.
Composto said that more than a month later, she still does not know whether her dog could have been saved.She now plans to file a lawsuit against the already embattled dog-walking app.
In an email exchange with DailyMail.com on Tuesday, Composto’s lawyer, Susan Chana Lask, said that in the minutes and hours after Bella’s death, Wag offered three different versions of events seeking to explain what had happened.
A representative from Wag initially called the dog owner, telling her the Yorkie had slipped and fallen, but was unharmed.
‘Next, fifteen minutes later, Wag called back to say Hannah, the dog walker, indicated that in actuality the larger dog (Chloe), took off to chase a bird, and in doing so Bella startled and ran after Chloe too,’ Lask recounted.’The running caused Bella to get «winded and stunned.»
‘When Angela said she did not believe that happened, then a few hours later another representative called her to tell her they do not know what happened to Bella.’
According to the attorney, Composto never got the chance to speak to Hannah directly.
‘When consumers have issues with a walker, Wag will not reveal the walker’s identity,’ Lask wrote.’This is no way to operate a business where Wag advertises their walkers are trained and vetted by them, then refuses to identify the very people who harm their dogs.
‘Hannah in this case completely disappeared and never gave an apology for Bella’s death.’
Wag launched in 2014 with the financial backing of actress Olivia Munn (right)
In June 2019, this Yorkshire terrier named Whiskey became the 14th dog to have died or gotten lost in Wag’s care
Around the same time, Wag customers reported their Shih Tzu named Benny stolen, claiming that the walker they had hired through the app was the culprit
Wag launched in 2014 with the financial backing of actress Olivia Munn, and it has been endorsed by the likes of Kendall Jenner, Mariah Carey and Chloe Grace-Moretz in exchange for complementary dog walks for life.
Five years later, the app is now valued at $650million and offers dog-walking services in 43 states and 110 cities.
Wag told the Post that it has offered Composto its support and has removed Hannah from the dog-walking app.
In June of this year, a Yorkshire terrier named Whiskey became the 14th dog to have died or gotten lost in Wag’s care since the app’s launch.
According to a Manhattan couple, their Yorkie was hit by a car while out with a walker who was hired through the app.
The walker allegedly had taken Whiskey outside without a harness or a collar, and then lied that the pooch had slipped out of its harness.After the accident, the walker was caught on surveillance video returning to the owners’ home to fetch the dead dog’s harness in an alleged attempt at a cover-up.
Sara and Nick Moore, from Houston, lost their Wheaten terrier Winnie in December 2018 when the pooch was hit by a car while being walked by a Wag staffer
A short time prior, another Manhattan couple reached out to Munn through Instagram, saying that their Wag walker allegedly had stolen their Shih Tzu, Benny.
The X-Men actress intervened and helped the owners recover their stolen dog, leading to the walker’s arrest on theft charges.
In January 2019, the app was accused of trying to silence a couple whose pet died in the hands of an inexperience walker.
Sara and Nick Moore, from Houston, used the Wag app for someone to take care of their Wheaten terrier Winnie at the last minute on December 10, 2018.
Winnie ended up getting hit by a car and died, despite the walker’s reassurance to the owners that the animal was ‘home safe.’
Kendall Jenner (left), Mariah Carey (center) and Chloe Grace-Moretz (right) have endorsed Wag on social media in exchange for free services for life
Wag has been accused of losing dogs before: seven lost dogs had been reported on social media in New York City alone.
A mutt called Duckie was hit by a car in Brooklyn in 2015, while a Chihuahua from the Upper East Side called Norman remains missing.
In May, a Wag dog sitter was ‘found passed out in couple’s home after downing a bottle of vodka, cooking eggs and falling asleep on their bed while the puppy cried’.
Wag’s website states that all of their walkers are vetted with a ‘rigorous screening process,’ which includes a background check.
But Lask, Angela Composto’s attorney, argues that Wag’s walkers are not properly trained to handle pets.
‘Bella’s death proves they are not trained as, even without training, any rational person would have taken Bella to the Vet,’ she wrote, ‘not carry her lifeless body back to the home and leave it there.It’s malevolent.’
