‘It’s sheer devastation,’ kennel owner says

Pets being looked after were left unsupervised when deadly fire struck

The owner of a St-Lazare kennel in which 18 dogs perished in a fire last Saturday spoke publicly on Friday, saying he hasn’t stopped sobbing over the loss of the animals and has been busy making funeral arrangements.

“There are no words to describe how I feel,” Nick Zevgolis, a veteran dog trainer and owner of the Family K9 kennel, told The Gazette.

“It’s sheer devastation. I’ve been completely sobbing, a wreck. I’ve been talking to all the families. I’ve been ... bringing the dogs to where they are going to be laid to rest.”

On Dec. 28, St-Lazare firefighters responded to a call by a neighbour at 7:30 p.m. who reported seeing smoke ris- ing from the kennel. The dogs died not from the flames, but of smoke inhalation.

Zevgolis said that the cause of the fire appears to be electrical, and it probably started in one of the walls. He added that he and his family were away visiting a sick relative at the time of the fire, and that he last entered the building at 4:30 p.m. and noticed nothing unusual.

The dogs were being boarded by families who were vacationing over the holidays. One of the dog owners, Michel Cohen, whose 4½-year-old Goldendooodle, Dexter, perished, has criticized Zevgolis, saying that the animals should have been under supervision at the time of the fire.

Zevgolis, whose house is located next to the kennel, dismissed the notion that he might have acted negligently, explaining that all his clients know that “I have always been a one-man operation.”

He said there “is absolutely no requirement” that dogs in a kennel be monitored by staff around the clock.

He disputed reports that he charged $100 a day to board a dog, saying his fee is $30. Co- hen said he was charged approximately $40 a day.

At present, kennel operators are not required to have a permit but that will change in March under a new provincial law.

Zevgolis did not respond to emailed questions as to why fire sprinklers were not installed in the kennel he operated for 11 years. The Quebec Animal Protection Act does not require sprinklers for kennels, but states that “a building in which an animal is kept must be built and maintained so as to not present a risk for the animal’s safety.”

Zevgolis, whose website includes videos of him training dogs, said 15 of the 17 dogowning families have contacted him, and “they have expressed their sympathies with what my family and I are going through along with them.”

Jarrid Adler, a dog owner and a client of Zevgolis for more than 12 years, said he has boarded his dogs at Family K9 many times, and praised the care and attention his pets received.