Shake A Paw to pay $300,000 to nearly 200 pet owners, under settlement with New York AG

The owner of two Long Island pet stores will pay $300,000 in restitution to nearly 200 customers who claim the business sold them critically ill puppies, many of which died shortly after they were brought home, state Attorney General Letitia James announced Friday as part of a settlement with the company.

Shake A Paw, with locations in Hicksville and Lynbrook, also agreed to cease “misleading” advertising from its website in which the store claims to sell the “healthiest” puppies and that it uses the “most trusted breeders,” prosecutors said.

As part of the agreement, the company, and its owner, Marc Jacobs, also agreed to only purchase animals from reputable breeders or brokers that follow state and local laws and to provide consumers with disclosures certifying the health of the puppies it sells, the breeder’s information and vaccine information, the AG said.

“Not only did Shake A Paw’s owners treat the dogs in their care despicably, they defrauded their customers by lying about their health, leaving many families stuck with expensive veterinary bills,” James said in a statement. “Shake A Paw’s days of buying and selling sick puppies are over, and their former customers will get restitution for the losses they suffered.”

Shake A Paw attorney Richard Hamburger said the settlement provides no admission of wrongdoing on Shake A Paw’s part and required no substantial change in its business operations, advertisements, customer disclosures or certification.

“The settlement agreement vindicates Shake A Paw that there was no consumer fraud, that Shake A Paw does not sell sick puppies, and that Shake A Paw lived up to its refund, exchange and reimbursement obligations under the New York Pet Lemon Law,” Hamburger said in a statement.

The settlement ends a civil trial that began in state Supreme Court in Nassau County last month.

The $300,000 will be distributed to 190 former Shake A Paw customers, many of whom spent thousands of dollars on medical bills after the puppies they bought fell sick. It was not immediately clear how the money would be divided.

Meaghan Huber, of Farmingdale, purchased a timid 3-pound Shih Tzu puppy named Mei Mei at Shake A Paw's Lynbrook location for $2,000 in June 2016. Days later, Mei Mei became seriously ill with kennel cough, pneumonia and later chronic bronchitis and died in Huber's arms on March 9, 2018, while on the way back to the animal hospital, court records show.

“As a longtime dog lover and customer affected by the neglect of these small helpless puppies, I am happy that justice is being served,” said Huber, who testified at the trial. 

“While nothing will ever fill the void of losing my family’s dog Mei Mei just shy of her second birthday and seeing her as sick as she was, we will always love her unconditionally and know she is running around pain free looking down on us with her angel wings.”

Erin Laxton, 20, of Valley Stream, said she purchased Merlin, a 5-pound Chihuahua-dachshund mix from Shake A Paw's Lynbrook store in 2020. Merlin became ill immediately and died, likely of pneumonia, after just a month, she said.

“Coming to a resolution after so much time is a huge relief, and I feel like I was able to get justice for my poor puppy, Merlin,” Laxton said. “I miss my puppy every day but I am proud to have been part of this process.”

The lawsuit, which sought financial restitution for consumers along with civil penalties, alleged that Shake A Paw sold dogs acquired at poorly maintained puppy mills, fabricated health certificates, lied about the animals' health and pedigrees, and failed to provide refunds when customers lodged complaints.

The attorney general's office said its investigation found that Shake A Paw knowingly sold puppies with serious illnesses or congenital defects, despite receiving health certifications signed off by the company's contracted veterinarians, often days before sale. 

Hamburger said the claims “are all false and not supported by a single judicial finding.”

Shortly after filing the lawsuit in December 2021, a Nassau judge granted a temporary restraining order forbidding Shake A Paw from purchasing new puppies for resale.

In April 2022, the judge lifted the order after the company posted a $250,000 bond, agreed to purchase animals from breeders licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, to provide the court a list of the breeders from whom it bought puppies and to allow its animals to be examined by an independent veterinarian.

Despite the settlement, Shake A Paw locations are likely to close at the end of the year after Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation banning the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits at retail stores statewide.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.