'That's Just Sick' Pug Owner Says Vet Worker Secretly Kept Dog After Family Paid for Euthanasia and Cremation

A Georgia family say a veterinary worker kept their four-year-old pug for months after they paid for euthanasia, leaving them mourning a pet who was still alive.

Owner Rebecca Belote says she recognised Cha Cha in a Facebook photograph, only to learn the dog had subsequently been put down.

Belote says Senoia Animal Hospital in Coweta County recommended euthanasia in March 2026 after telling the family their pug had organ failure and diabetic ketoacidosis.

They accepted the recommendation and paid for services including euthanasia and communal cremation, believing they had said their final goodbye.

Facebook Photo Prompts Questions

Months later, Belote was scrolling through Facebook when she spotted a photograph of a dog she recognised as Cha Cha.

She says a former hospital employee subsequently told her that a worker had taken the pug home instead of carrying out the euthanasia.

Belote also spoke to the worker's husband, who she says confirmed that his wife had kept Cha Cha for months and described the dog as being in good health.

That description is part of the family's account, not an independent veterinary assessment of the pug's condition.

Owner Questions Pug's Death

Belote says Cha Cha had already been put down by the time the family discovered she had survived the March appointment, leaving no opportunity to bring her home.

She believes the later euthanasia was intended to conceal what happened, but that motive has not been independently established.

'That's just sick,' she said, expressing her belief that a healthy dog had been euthanised after being kept without the family's knowledge.

The available reporting does not establish who authorised the later procedure, what medical assessment informed it or whether Cha Cha was clinically healthy at that time.

Hospital Denial and Police Decision

Belote says hospital managers denied that an employee had kept Cha Cha when she raised her concerns, while the clinic's attorney declined substantive public comment.

The attorney said the hospital had been advised against discussing the developing issues publicly and had decided to follow that advice.

Senoia police and prosecutors declined to pursue criminal charges in connection with the pet cases, and police referred the matter to state veterinary regulators.

Neither the decision against prosecution nor the referral determines whether professional misconduct or civil liability exists, and the accounts remain disputed.

The family's bill reportedly totalled $716.50, (approximately £529), covering veterinary care, diagnostic tests, euthanasia and communal cremation. Belote says they left believing Cha Cha had been put to sleep. They believed the payment covered their final arrangements for Cha Cha.

Cha Cha's Bond With Teenage Owner

Belote described Cha Cha and her 17-year-old son as inseparable, saying they wore matching hoodies and that he carried the pug almost everywhere.

The recommendation to euthanise her had been particularly difficult for both her son and her husband.

Another family previously said their cat, Annie, had remained alive with a hospital worker after an appointment for euthanasia, prompting the hospital to acknowledge falling short in honouring their trust.

Annie was later euthanised, but the acknowledgement concerned her case and should not be treated as an admission about Cha Cha.