I bought a “Cockapoo” for 86% off – but when I found out what breed the dog actually was I returned it

A FLORIDA woman is still at a loss after having to return a dog to a pet store after being told it was a young Cockapoo.

Yonique Thomas-Smellie was looking for a specific breed that would get along with her other dog, Peeka.

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“We wanted a companion dog for him because we’re at work most of the day and he’s home alone,” she said WSVN.

Thomas-Smellie decided to look for a Cocker Spaniel or a Poodle and soon came across an ad at a local pet store with the perfect option: a Cockapoo.

She visited the store called Forever Love Puppies and brought the advertisement with her.

“I showed them the puppy they had online,” she told WSVN. “They said it was a ‘Cockapoo F1B girl.’ A cocker spaniel and a poodle.”

But the puppy in the store had red fur, while the ad showed a dog with tan fur.

When Thomas-Smellie asked about the discrepancy, they told her, “Hey, sometimes the coat color changes as the puppies get older,” she said.

She decided to pay for the pup at the advertised price of $495 plus tax (an 86% discount off the regular price), sign the papers, and take them home.

She named the dog Pepper and introduced him to Peeka, who welcomed the company, Thomas-Smellie said.

But the new owner soon felt uneasy as Pepper began to grow, resembling less and less of the cockatoo she was meant to be.

“Their facial features get longer, their body gets longer and we’re like, ‘Okay, that doesn’t look like the breed they sold us.'” “That looks completely different,” Thomas-Smellie said.

So she took Pepper to a vet who confirmed Pepper wasn’t a Cockapoo – but actually a mini dachshund.

“At this point we are angry because we were under the impression that this dog was a Cockapoo,” she told reporters.

“Don’t get me wrong, she’s cute, she’s gorgeous, but this isn’t the dog that suits my family,” she added.

She decided to contact the pet store and request either a refund or an exchange for a dog of the breed listed on her contract.

Forever Love Puppies refused to comply with her request.

So Thomas-Smellie sought legal advice from Howard Finkelstein, WSVN’s legal expert, who contacted the pet shop owners on her behalf.

Finkelstein cited the provisions of Florida’s lemon law, which protect consumers from purchasing defective products, and was able to persuade the store owners to give their dissatisfied customer a full refund.