Location: South Carolina
So just as the title says. I’m a pet sitter on Rover in South Carolina. I have been boarding this dog and I needed to run out to the pet store for something and decided to take the dog with me since the owner didn’t want him to be left alone at the home. Following the wishes of the client, I decided to bring him with me since it was a pet friendly store. On the way there, he decided to jump out of the window with little to no warning. (Note: We were on a 30 MPH road and I was only going about 25 and he was also secured to the headrest via his leash). For whatever reason, he jumped out of the car, still attached to his leash and was dragged a couple feet since I was able to stop pretty fast. He immediately started yelping and couldn’t put pressure on his paw and I started to freak out because I have never dealt with a dog being injured on my watch before and I have been pet sitting for 3-4 years now (I also have 5 stars and “star sitter” status if that matters. I contacted the owner immediately, told him what happened and brought the dog to where he was staying so he could see the dog and take him to the vet (thankfully he was on vacation in town about 10 minutes from me). This is the very first time I’ve ever had a dog jump out of a car and I just want to know if they have any recourse to sue for negligence or something since this happened on my watch?