Santa Barbaras Camp Canine allegedly hands California couple their beloved puppy back in a tub

A California couple expecting to pick up their beloved one-year-old English bulldog from daycare instead learned he had drowned in a pool, before allegedly being shown his body lying in a plastic tub.Bruce’s owners Chris and Ashley Merz, of Ventura, were allegedly never contacted about their dog’s death before arriving at Camp Canine in Santa Barbara around 3:30 p.m.Thursday to pick him up, Ashley’s mother–Alison Genet–told Noozhawk.Instead, Chris was told at the daycare, which bills itself online as “Disneyland for dogs,” that Bruce had drowned and was shown his body inside the plastic tub.The horrifying moment was captured on video by someone who appeared to be another Camp Canine patron.Police told the family Bruce had drowned sometime between 1 p.m.

and 2 p.m.By the time the bulldog was pulled from the pool, rigor mortis had set in, and Bruce was never taken to an emergency veterinarian, Genet claimed.“English bulldogs, by nature, aren’t natural swimmers,” she said.Bruce had attended and trained at Camp Canine for six months before the tragedy.The facility separates small, medium and large dogs into different yards, with two unfenced pools located in the large-dog area.Bruce was typically placed with small or medium dogs because of his size but somehow ended up in the large-dog yard where he drowned.Camp Canine’s owners told the family Bruce was not supposed to be in that yard yet had no explanation as to how he ended up there.The Santa Barbara Police Department responded to the boarding facility on Montecito Street at approximately 4:45 p.m.

following a report of a dog drowning.“During the initial investigation, the responding officer met with the K-9’s owners, who provided information regarding their K-9 and the circumstances surrounding this tragic incident,” Lt.Ryan DeJohn said.“The officer also interviewed the employees who were present when the incident occurred.”The circumstances surrounding Bruce’s death are now under...