In recent days, a dispute over the death of a pet has generated widespread social concern. Mr. Mao took his beloved silver fox cocoa to bathe in a green pet shop, where he died unexpectedly. Mr. Mao therefore filed numerous claims for compensation, including $20,000 for moral damages.
Mr. Mao recalled that, at around 10 a.m. on the day of the incident, he had suddenly been informed by the pet shop that cocoa had been in the shower. Mr. Mao rushed to the pet store, and the scene in front of him had caused him to wonder: cocoa was all wet, its side fell in the bath pool, it was difficult to breathe and it had convulsions. In order to ascertain the medical condition of cocoa as soon as possible, Mr. Mao was urgently sent that afternoon to the only MRI clinic in Taiwon City. The results of the examination indicated that cocoa was “acute brain damage”. Since then, Mr. Mao has continued to send cocoa to a pet hospital for rescue, and Mr. Mao ' s death has left him with great grief and difficulty in coming out of the shadow of cocoa death. According to Mr. Mao, since the pet shop had made serious errors in the provision of services, which had led to the death of cocoa, he had filed a case with the court for a total amount of $31,282.36 for compensation to the defendant for damage to property and moral damage, including a dog worth $2,000, a medical fee of $6582.36, an MRI inspection fee of $2,500, burial expenses of $1,100 and a moral damage relief of $20,000.
Facing Mr. Mao's demands, the green pet shop has different claims. The pet shop argued that Mr. Mao ' s dog was older, was in poor health and that Mr. Mao had concealed the true picture of the dog, and therefore requested a re-identification of the dog.
In July, the Court delivered its first instance judgement in the case. The court found that the defendant ' s green pet shop had provided services to the plaintiff, Mr. Mao, as agreed, and that the parties had formed a service contract relationship. In the present case, there is no evidence of an abnormal state of health prior to the bathing of the silver fox dog, or of the reasonable duty of care in the service of the pet shop. At the same time, as cocoa has died and funerals, such as cremation, it has not been possible for the pet shop to request a re-certification, and the pet shop has not proved that Mr. Mao concealed the true picture of the dog or that the diagnosis of the pet hospital and the consultation centre is not in conformity with the facts. In the end, the court awarded the defendant a sum of US$ 1,000 for damages caused by the death of the dog, US$ 5589.36 for medical expenses, US$ 2,500 for MRI examinations and US$ 1100 for funeral rehabilitation, totalling US$ 10189.36, and dismissed the plaintiff ' s other claims. Following the judgement, the defendant appealed the judgement and, after hearing, the Taiwon City Intermediate People ' s Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the sentence.
In this case, the issue of compensation for moral damages was of great concern. The Civil Code provides that if the injured party chooses to claim its liability for breach of contract, the claim of the injured party for moral damages shall not be affected by the breach of one of the parties ' rights to personal integrity and causing serious moral damage. In the present case, however, the fact that the plaintiff had sent the silver fox dog to the defendant ' s place of bathing and died as a result of his injuries did not create a situation in which the liability for breach of contract and tort would be competing, so that Mr. Mao ' s claim for moral damages would not fall within the scope of compensation for a dispute arising out of the contractual relationship.
As human partners, pets occupy an important place in people ' s lives, and the unexpected death of pets tends to have a tremendous emotional impact on their owners. The case also reminds the wider pet owner that the selection of the pet service should be carefully examined, and that the service provider should also upgrade the level of service and exercise due diligence to avoid similar tragedies.