Stupid Lawsuit will probably make Canadian Tire no longer pet friendly
 

Injured customer unleashes lawyer on Canadian Tire - Metro - TheChronicleHerald.ca

"A Canadian Tire customer is suing the retail giant after an encounter with some little dogs at the Quinpool Road store.

In a notice of action obtained Thursday from the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, Halifax resident Karl E. McGrath says he suffered personal injuries, damages and loss after stumbling because he got entangled with long leashes attached to dogs that were receiving treats from store employees.

"One of the dogs was getting attention from the cashier on one side and the other was getting attention from a customer service employee, such that both dogs were fully extended on their leashes in opposite directions," reads the notice.

During the March 27 incident, he endeavoured to sidestep the dogs by stepping over a leash, McGrath says in the court document.

"The plaintiff proceeded to step over the leash of one of the dogs when the dog turned on him and snarled as he was stepping over," reads the statement of claim.

"This startled the plaintiff and caused him to lose his balance and stumble, landing awkwardly on this left foot."

Part of the problem was the congestion caused by the employees giving the little dogs treats, contends the statement of claim.

The document indicates that as McGrath walked to his car he began feeling pain in his lower back and a pulling sensation.

The plaintiff seeks damages due to the careless and negligent actions he encountered at the customer service counter at the store.

Among other things, the management at the store failed to ensure the customer was safe while on the property and failed to identify the little dogs as a hazardous presence within the store, the court documents say.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

Canadian Tire has 30 days to file a defence."
:mad:


Seriously!!!! I can't believe this guy wasn't smart enough to ask the owner or the employees to move, all it takes is a simple "excuse me". I enjoy taking my boy with me there, it's one of the few places now that allows dogs.

Sorry to hear, hope they do not kick dogs out of the store. i had to look the store up. Looks like a neat store. We don't have any stores like that here in the states that allow dogs in. Of course Petco or Petsmart but no places that have any things besides pet products.

That's too bad... Stupid people ruin things for everyone :(

I do feel bad that the guy got hurt, but still it's frustrating when we as pet owners work hard to be able to take our animals to public places, only to have silly incidents like this that ruins it.

That sucks! Yet another reason why I HATE flexi leashes in public places (especially with idiots who don't know how to use them). I hate irresponsible dog owners who ruin things for everyone. That's a shame. Plus I really don't think the guy has a good enough reason to sue... get over it, lol.

That stinks! I hope they continue to let dogs go there. My bf works in a tire store, and loves telling me all about the dogs that come in each day. He sent me a pic last week of him holding a customer's yorkie while he was at work :) The boys love it when we go visit him at work. The customers love to see them!

Sounds to me like it's the guy's own stupid fault. If he was trying to get past them, he should have said something, such as "excuse me" or whatever. People are so dumb, and then they sue others for their own stupidity. Sue happy world we live in now:(

I think they should not let people use the flexi leashes instead of not letting dogs come in. Although I have a flexi leash I do not use it very often if at all and I cannot stand when people use one and let there dog go as far as they can on those and get tangled up in everything.

Pardon the language, but what a jack ass. Obviously not a dog owner or dog lover. Most people who own dogs or love them would not mind....

It sounds like he got injured trying to step over the leashes rather than wait just a minute for the dogs to get their treat. The dogs were not a hazard until he tried to step over them. I am sorry he got hurt but wonder a bit about him feeling it after he left and was in the parking lot. Perhaps if he had been a little less impatient?

agreed! and i love love love your new siggy :p

The True Story!
 

Wow, it is truly amazing what you can find on the internet. I am the owner of the dogs that were involved in this incident. They actually were not on flexi leashes, the leashes were only 4 feet long, not 10 feet, normal Dollar-store leashes. Canadian Tire is still welcoming dogs at that location, but is naming me as a 3rd party in this suit. Most people would realize it is unwise to walk over a dog's leash, walk between a dog and his owner, or step almost on top of a small dog while he is eating. I thought my little guy was very well behaved under the circumstances, he did't bite or jump up, he just growled.

The guy is a twit, hope he loses. No where in the post did it say flexi lead, some just assumed that. What idiot steps over a lead/dog. He needed to wait or ask those in his way to move. Who knows what a small dog would do, if strange man loomed over them, it's very threatening.
I'd of growled too.

I was not there, but after reading the post, it seems to me that it was unfortunate that the man didn't use some common sense and not step over the dog:(
Apologies for my ignorance, but what is a flexi leash - one of those leashes that is of the heavy elastic kind?

Couldn\'t all of that have been averted if the "plaintiff" had simply waited until the people and dogs got out of the way? He has a mouth I am sure and could have said something like, oh, maybe, ummm......, "Excuse me please!":confused: