Dog Owner Reacts To $65,000 Settlement In Pet's Death

DENVER (CBS4)- A maid service must pay a Denver woman $65,000 for the death of her dog. The judge's ruling may be the largest court judgement for the death of a pet in Colorado.

"You can't put a price on it. It'd be over $1 million for me," said Ruthie's owner Robin Lohre. "It was more than I was expecting. It's not what she was worth to me. She was worth much more."

Lohre first shared the story of Ruthie's death in Oct. 2011. Lohre said she asked "Posh Maids" if it was alright to leave Ruthie at home during a cleaning.

Lohre said she made it clear to the crew which doors to use when they left so the 18-month-old dog couldn't get out. She also said she offered to take the dog with her, but the maids said it was okay.

The dog, "Ruthie," was hit by a car. Lohre said the maids did nothing to help the dog survive and sued the cleaning service "Posh Maids" for negligence and emotional distress.

"I found her underneath the kitchen table dead, lifeless. My first thought is I've got to get my daughters out," said Lohre after Ruthie's death.

In October of last year, Posh Maids' owner told CBS4 that wasn't the whole story.

"The dog was growling at the maids and very aggressive at the time and I was on the phone with them. I had to make sure that the maids were safe as well. We do tell our clients to secure their dogs," said Posh Maids owner Miranda Pallone.

Lohre said the judgement doesn't bring Ruthie back, but it does acknowledge that what happened was not right, "There's still a loss. It doesn't bring her back."

Her lawyer hopes the case sends a message.

"This says that animals are a part of the family. You can suffer as much emotional distress and heartache when you lose one of them as any other member of your family," said Lohre's attorney Jennifer Edwards.