Kevin Sanders was sentenced to five years in prison on a Class 6 felony animal cruelty conviction which involved the death of a dog and abuse at Your Dog’s Best Friends located in Alexandria, Virginia.
He has been ordered to report to prison early next week.
The abuse occurred at the “Your Dog’s Best Friends” boarding and grooming facility. It had been an anonymous former employee who turned over more than 500 hours of video from security recordings to the authorities which investigators reviewed. Between July 2024 and January 2025, Sanders could be seen choking and violently handling dogs.
On February 2, 2026 during his trial, Kevin Sanders pled guilty to a felony charge related to the death of a dog named Abigail while employed at the facility. Surveillance footage showed how impatient Sanders had been with the three-year-old golden retriever which contributed to her death by Sanders pulling on her neck with a grooming loop.
The judge suspended three years of prison time and 12 months on each Class 1 misdemeanor conviction, with all misdemeanor time also suspended. The suspended sentence, however is conditioned on two years of supervised probation, two years of good behavior, completion of a cognitive behavioral evaluation and any recommended treatment, completion of anger management and restrictions prohibiting animal ownership and employment involving animals. The defendant is also prohibited from contacting the victims in the case.
Make sure to thoroughly investigate where your dog is groomed or boarded.
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