Nicola Peltz Beckham has filed a lawsuit against a groomer after her dog died following a service at her New York home earlier this summer.
Peltz Beckham, who is married to Victoria and David Beckham’s son Brooklyn, claimed in the lawsuit filed on Tuesday in Westchester, New York, and obtained by Fox News Digital, that groomer Jony Ceballos “violently mistreated and/or intentionally abused” her dog, Nala, “with utter callous disregard for her safety, health and well-being. Ceballos’ actions severely, and ultimately fatally, injured Nala.”
Included as defendants in the lawsuit are Ceballos, mobile grooming company HoundSpa and its owner, Deborah Gittleman.
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Following the grooming service in HoundSpa’s mobile van last month, Peltz Beckham said in the documents that “Nala returned from the grooming in severe physical distress. Nala was hyperventilating, breathing heavily, and wheezing. Her chest was pulsating. Nicola could immediately observe that something was seriously wrong, and that Nala was suffering after leaving the groomer.”
Peltz Beckham rushed Nala to the vet, which was 15 minutes away, according to the documents, and the dog died two hours later “of the horrors that had happened to her in the grooming van.”
“This case arises from groomer Defendant Jony Ceballos’ intentional and malicious abuse of dogs, which caused the death of Nicola’s healthy dog, Nala; and the reckless and malicious conduct of Defendant grooming company, HoundSpa, and its owner, Gittleman, who knew of a history of complaints alleging that Ceballos had repeatedly mistreated and abused animals and yet continued to employ him and put animals, including Nicola’s dog Nala, in harm’s way,” the suit stated. “Defendants’ severe and outrageous conduct has caused damages and emotional distress to Nicola, who witnessed her beloved dog suffer and die. This case is about holding responsible those who abuse animals in their care and shedding light on the lack of protections for pet owners and their beloved dogs and pets.”
The lawsuit said that Peltz Beckham’s brother and his girlfriend had had a “horrendous” experience with HoundSpa and Ceballos two years ago with their dog, alleging that HoundSpa’s owner had “received and knew of many other complaints alleging Ceballos’ abuse and mistreatment of dogs. Nicola reasonably believed that upon receiving such complaints, Gittleman would not send Ceballos as a groomer to Nicola or her family and would remove Ceballos as a HoundSpa groomer.”
The lawsuit claimed “Nala went into the grooming van, a happy, healthy dog, but returned injured and in severe physical distress—breathing heavily and wheezing, with her chest pulsating.” The vet found Nala’s tongue to be blue, she had fluid in her lungs and was suffering from neurological distress, according to the lawsuit.
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The lawsuit claimed that Gittleman “should never have allowed Ceballos to continue to groom pets after receiving multiple customer complaints concerning his mistreatment and abuse of animals,” also noting that Peltz Beckham didn’t realize at the time that the grooming van had no camera.
“By retaining him as an employee, and failing to monitor him and his conduct, Gittleman knowingly and maliciously, or recklessly, put every dog that was groomed by HoundSpa at risk of being harmed,” the lawsuit alleged.
Any damages recovered from the lawsuit will be donated to dog charity and rescue organizations, the suit said.
“Nicola is left devastated,” the lawsuit added. “Nala was more than just a pet, she was a member of Nicola’s family – she was like one of Nicola’s children, her baby. She trusted that HoundSpa would abide by its mission ‘to care for each and every dog just like we would want another to care for ours,’ but instead, HoundSpa ended Nala’s life.”
Peltz Beckham wrote about Nala’s death on her Instagram in June, saying it had been the “hardest month of my life. i can’t even find the words to describe my heartbreak on so many levels. nala was perfectly healthy when she went to the groomers yesterday but came out hyperventilating and couldn’t catch her breath.”
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She said she wanted to share what happened to “prevent this from happening to other dogs. her life was taken away from her way too soon. she was my beautiful queen and stayed by my side for 9 years through everything. please be careful who you send your dogs to because you don’t know what goes on behind closed doors. 1 day without nala on earth feels like an eternity. i wish i could have her back in my arms. i pray she’s with my naunni. i hope i see them soon.”
On Wednesday, she added that she was “still in so much shock and pain” over Nala’s death. “I can’t bear it. I’m outraged to hear how common stories like Nala’s are. We need to do better and change the laws to better protect fur babies and the loving owners who care for them.”
The comments section was flooded with support for the “Bates Motel” actress, including PETA, who wrote: “Sending so much love and strength as you honor sweet Nala and speak out for change. Thank you for sharing her story and letting folks know that these heartbreaking incidents are alarmingly common.”
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Peltz Beckham and HoundSpa for comment. Neighboring businesses who know Ceballos told WABC-TV that he is not a person who would mistreat or abuse a dog.
