{"id":379464,"date":"2026-08-24T04:42:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T04:42:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/379464\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T04:42:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T04:42:14","slug":"animal-advocates-push-for-stricter-pet-grooming-rules-after-dog-dies-during-appointment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/379464\/","title":{"rendered":"Animal advocates push for stricter pet grooming rules after dog dies during appointment"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Rilee's \"Rilee's Rilee’s Law after pet dies on grooming table<\/a> <\/p>\n

When you drop your dog off at a groomer, you expect them to come home safe. One Largo man says his 10-year-old Great Pyrenees never made it off the grooming table. Now he’s teaming up with animal advocates to demand more oversight of pet groomers across the state.\u00a0<\/p>\n

LARGO, Fla. – A Largo man is pushing for more oversight of pet groomers after his 10-year-old Great Pyrenees died during a grooming appointment last year.<\/p>\n

The backstory:<\/p>\n

Neil Rubenstein says he dropped Rilee off at Fluffy Puppies of Pinellas<\/a> on Oct. 18, 2025. Less than an hour later, he says he was called back to the business and found his dog unresponsive on the grooming table.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

He said, “Rilee was laying on her side on the grooming table with her tongue out, and she had already expired. So, I obviously lost it.”<\/p>\n

What happened to Rilee? <\/p>\n

Rubenstein says he obtained surveillance video from the grooming area and after consulting with a veterinarian, believes it shows the restraint around Rilee\u2019s neck was too tight.<\/p>\n

He also says the video shows no attempt was made to provide first aid or resuscitation.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

A necropsy has not been conducted, so the cause of Rilee\u2019s death has not been independently established.<\/p>\n

Pinellas Animal Services cited Fluffy Puppies of Pinellas for “Neglect \u2013 failure to provide humane care.” The business pleaded no contest and faced a $148 fine.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

The other side:<\/p>\n

FOX 13 reached out to Fluffy Puppies of Pinellas for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.<\/p>\n

Push for \u2018Rilee\u2019s Law\u2019 <\/p>\n

Rilee\u2019s death has prompted Rubenstein to team up with animal advocates who want more requirements for Florida pet groomers.<\/p>\n

Elizabeth Olson, founder of the Animal Justice Task Force, says Florida does not license or certify pet groomers statewide. She says there also are no statewide emergency training requirements for groomers.<\/p>\n

Olson is developing a proposal she calls “Rilee\u2019s Law.” The proposal is still in its early stages and would seek to require pet groomers to have basic emergency training.<\/p>\n

What they’re saying:<\/p>\n

Jennifer Harmon, owner of Pet Styles By Jennifer and a pet groomer for 46 years, supports requiring emergency training.<\/p>\n

“I think there should be requirements,” Harmon said. “I think there should be CPR training. There should be an emergency protocol that all staff should be aware of and be ready to enact.”<\/p>\n

Rubenstein also believes the industry needs more oversight.<\/p>\n

“I think there needs to be some sort of governing body that regulates them, that oversees them,” he said.<\/p>\n

A new dog, a lasting memory <\/p>\n

Rubenstein now has another Great Pyrenees, Sophie. He says he takes extra precautions when she is groomed, including staying with her and helping with the process.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

He says Rilee\u2019s memory remains throughout his home and hopes her death will lead to changes for other pets.<\/p>\n

What’s next:<\/p>\n

Olson recently launched a public survey to gauge support for the idea. https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/e\/1FAIpQLSfHPc-lXocYt34vH7naGDAvdMrM7mYSq6URfUCvcPeiaqc7Rw\/viewform<\/a> She plans to take the proposal to Pinellas County leaders before eventually working with state lawmakers on potential legislation.<\/p>\n

The Source: This story is based on interviews with Neil Rubenstein, Elizabeth Olson of the Animal Justice Task Force and pet groomer Jennifer Harmon. It also includes information from Pinellas Animal Services regarding the citation issued to Fluffy Puppies of Pinellas. FOX 13 reached out to Fluffy Puppies of Pinellas for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.<\/p>\n

Pets and Animals<\/a>Pinellas County<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rilee’s Law after pet dies on grooming table When you drop your dog off at a groomer, you…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":379465,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[47,115,8713,1157,202,204,203,199,201,200,628],"class_list":["post-379464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-st-petersburg","tag-fl","tag-news","tag-pets-animals","tag-pinellas","tag-st-pete","tag-st-pete-headlines","tag-st-pete-news","tag-st-petersburg","tag-st-petersburg-headlines","tag-st-petersburg-news","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}