A family dog was nearly blinded , its owner has said , by an allergic reaction after it was groomed at a Pets at Home mega-store . Terry Maughan , 20 , from Norton paid £36 for his 20-month-old West Highland terrier Snowbell to have the treatment . But when he took his beloved pooch home he was shocked to see the dog struggling to breathe and unable to open her eyes . Terry Maughan ( left ) with his younger brother Christopher Maughan ( right ) with Snowbell . Builder Terry rushed Snowbell to the vets where they discovered she had suffered an allergic reaction to the shampoo . 'We all thought she was going to die , ' Mr Maughan said . 'She could have had a heart attack , it was beating so fast . Her eyes were red and she would n't open them and she was drooling a lot . 'Snowbell was walking into things so we thought she could have also gone blind . Everyone was so worried about her , she is part of the family and my brothers and sisters were in tears . ' I think it 's disgraceful what happened . You do n't expect anything like this to happen to your dog when you put it in the hands of licensed and trained professionals . 'She 's improving now thanks to a course of eye drops they vet gave to her but it 's a very slow process . ' I fear she will have eyesight problems in the future because of this and may go blind . 'My father went to the Pets at Home store to tell them to stop using chemicals because our dog almost died . When Terry took his dog to the vets its eyes were red and aggravated , it was drooling excessively and had a rapid heart rate and temperature . The symptoms appeared to have been caused by a grooming seesion . 'It took them three days to respond to our complaint and they never even asked us how . Snowbell was or said sorry for what happened . I think it 's disgraceful and appalling . ' Snowbell fell ill an hour after having a shampoo , wash and haircut at the Groom Rooms salon based at Pets at Home in Festival Park , Stoke-on-Trent . The family were landed with a £102 vet 's bill . Pets at Home have launched an investigation into the grooming products that were used on Snowbell . 'Snowbell was reluctant to open her eyelids , which appeared swollen with yellow purulent discharge coming from both eyes , ' Vet Susan Cuthbert at Charter Veterinary Surgery in Newcastle-under-Lyme , said . She explained that parts of both of the dog 's eyes were red and inflamed and the dog was drooling far more than usual . 'It could have been worse had they not brought her in on Sunday . She looked in a bad state and distressed and I 'm glad they brought Snowbell to see me . I do n't know for certain what caused it , but it could have been a reaction to something , ' Ms Cuthbert said . Pets at Home have launched an investigation into the products they use on dogs . A spokesman said : 'Our Groom Room colleagues are all highly trained and use only specifically formulated products which have a history of use in pet grooming . 'When washing dogs , great care is taken to avoid shampoo coming into contact with a dog 's eyes . 'This was certainly the case with Snowbell so we were very surprised to learn of her reaction . 'The products used with Snowbell are common to all 179 Groom Rooms around the country and we have seen no other cases of dogs being affected in this way . ' It was not the first time a customer of the grooming service in Stoke-on-Trent had taken their dog home to find it was dangerously unwell , the Stoke Sentinel reported . Nicki Jones , owner of another West Highland Terrier , says her pet went through a similar experience last year after going to the Pets at Home store . She had to pay £470 in vets bills for four visits and two eye surgeries after she was told by her vet that her dog could go blind . Snowbell fell ill an hour after having a shampoo , wash and haircut at the Groom Rooms salon based at Pets at Home in Festival Park , Stoke-on-Trent . Terry with Snowbell , the builder was worried the family 's beloved dog had died from the reaction . Snowbell pictured in two of her favourite outfits before being groomed at Pets At Home .
Dog had bloodshot eyes and rapid a heartbeat just after it was groomed . Its owner , Snowbell , from Norton rushed to take the pooch to the vet . Vet said quick action saved dog , Terry Maughan , but family feared it would die . Pets at Home has started an investigation but the cause remains unknown .