A St. Petersburg, Florida woman is devastated and says a termite control company is responsible for the death of her cat because they showed up earlier than the time agreed on in the contract.
Caroline Stadler found termites in her new home and contacted Terminix about getting rid of them. She knew the most effective way to remove termites is to tent the home and release a deadly gas.
Things went horribly wrong after the contract with Terminix was violated. They were supposed to show up a 3 p.m. to begin work. Caroline was scheduled to get off of work at 1 p.m. and arrived home at 1:30 p.m., only to find the tent already in place.
Caroline Stadler commented on the senseless death of her emotional support cat, 10-year-old Delilah on the Terminix Facebook page:
“I have video footage proving that they began the tenting process at noon and arrived around 11:30. My neighbors said the PEST people said “it is what it is” when they couldn’t get a hold of me and just continued the tenting process. They saw the litter box and cat food still out. They saw my almost packed suitcase laying open on my bedroom floor. But since they saw no physical cat they continued (newsflash: cats hide around strangers and my cat doesn’t meow).
While crying and screaming for someone to save my cat I had multiple people call Terminix asking if they could do something, anything. They said there was nothing they could do once the gas was released. And no one came. I sat with my neighbors outside my house for hours trying to get someone to come take the tent down, but no one was willing to. I filed a report with the sheriff’s office and department of agriculture and reluctantly retired to my air bnb.
The next morning PEST came to remove the tent. I confronted them and broke down, begging them to take my cat out. Once they did I knew the worst had come true- my cat was dead. And what hurt was that the PEST worker said that if they got the emergency call yesterday from Terminix they could have come out with their equipment to save her.
I am hurt, grieving, and beyond enraged. All I received were half-hearted apologies and barely any words from Terminix. And this is not okay. I want #JusticeforDahlia. She was my emotional support animal and one of the best cats I have ever had the privilege to own. She slept with me every night, greeted me at the door when I came home, and curled up with me whenever I sat down. She was my furbaby and will be deeply missed.”
In an interview with news media, Caroline stated:
“My cat, she hides, she’s scared of everything. If she saw people that she didn’t know, was in a situation that she wasn’t familiar with, she’s going to hide and I assume that’s what happened. She hid under my bed and you can’t see her when she hides. They didn’t even know a cat was in there and Terminix was supposed to tell them that an animal was in there. “
Terminix has issued a statement:
“We were recently made aware of the incident involving a fumigation at a customer’s home. The safety and satisfaction of our customers is our top priority, and we are looking into the matter internally with our preferred fumigation service provider.”
A worker put on a gas mask and went inside the next morning, only to find Delilah dead at the end of Caroline’s bed.
Signs placed on the home by Terminix state the work began at 12:45 p.m. According to an updated post by News Channel 5, Caroline plans to sue Terminix for the death of her cat.
“I only really saw remorse from the guy that brought her out. The whole team, they were being very defensive, they said they were just doing their job. They did not do their search thoroughly and they did not do their due diligence in making sure the house was clear. I would like to see this never happen to someone again. I would love to have my cat back, but that’s not possible.”
Rest in peace, Delilah. You didn’t deserve this. It’s time for businesses to do their job as they should or more will face lawsuits. Animals are family.
Just had to put our Cat Buddy to sleep because we were unaware that they were going to treat neighbors house and Shop. He had under there shop.If only had new caused him brain damage.
This is so horrible. I musty don’t know what to say.
If you want to do some research this isn’t this businesses first rodeo.
This occurrence completely enraged me and brought me to tears, literally. My heart breaks for Caroline Stadler and her kitty Delilah. We had our first home in Florida tented. The effects are insanely awful. I agree with Elisa. I would have held my breath and gone in ASAP if I could not locate a gas mask in minutes. Obvious negligence on the part of Terminix, and totally preventable. Those pest control technicians had no definitive way of knowing if there were living beings hiding somewhere in that house, human or animal, with a quick walk through, and no right to begin the fumigation earlier than contracted. I would want to sue also. I hope Terminix takes a good hard look at their policies and procedures and acts accordingly. Sending prayers and love to Angel Delilah and Caroline Stadler. 😱😠😭