{"id":1364,"date":"2026-11-15T01:13:00","date_gmt":"2026-11-15T01:13:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/2026\/11\/15\/dog-groomer-and-customers-puppy-found-dead-in-van-after-carbon-monoxide-poisoning\/"},"modified":"2026-11-15T01:13:00","modified_gmt":"2026-11-15T01:13:00","slug":"dog-groomer-and-customers-puppy-found-dead-in-van-after-carbon-monoxide-poisoning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/2026\/11\/15\/dog-groomer-and-customers-puppy-found-dead-in-van-after-carbon-monoxide-poisoning\/","title":{"rendered":"Dog Groomer and Customer\u2019s Puppy Found Dead in Van After Carbon Monoxide Poisoning"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Victoria Starr Ferraro, 60, was found unresponsive in her mobile grooming van outside a San Antonio customer\u2019s home on Nov. 11<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/4OCNp8B-_0vqdCjWXbF-AlrB7LY=\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)\/Victoria-Ferraro-02-111426-86acffe799704b6bbde5e0da69386a85.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Starr FerraroCredit: GoFundMe\" title=\"Dog Groomer Found Dead Alongside Puppy in Van After Carbon Monoxide Poisoning\" \/><figcaption><i>Victoria Starr Ferraro<br \/>Credit: GoFundMe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>NEED TO KNOW<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>A 60-year-old Texas dog groomer, Victoria Starr Ferraro, was found dead alongside a customer\u2019s puppy in her mobile grooming van on Nov. 11<\/li>\n<li>Her cause of death was determined to be carbon monoxide poisoning<\/li>\n<li>Ferraro\u2019s nephew remembered her as being devoted to animals, family and her grandchildren<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A Texas community is grieving the loss of a 60-year-old dog groomer, who was found dead alongside a puppy inside her mobile grooming van.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities in San Antonio were first called to a home on the city\u2019s Far Northwest Side at around 5 p.m. local time on Wednesday, Nov. 11, after a woman was discovered unresponsive inside a van parked outside, <a href=\"https:\/\/news4sanantonio.com\/news\/local\/mobile-dog-groomer-puppy-found-dead-in-van-on-far-west-side\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">WOAI<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.expressnews.com\/news\/article\/woman-dog-death-grooming-van-22527232.php\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"2\"><em>San Antonio Express News<\/em><\/a><em> <\/em>reported.<\/p>\n<p>The woman \u2014 later identified as 60-year-old Victoria Starr Ferraro \u2014 had arrived at a customer\u2019s home on the 12000 block of Dusty Boots Road in her grooming van to work on a dog, a puppy named Oliver, in San Antonio\u2019s Davis Ranch community.<\/p>\n<p>After the customer hadn\u2019t heard from Ferraro for several hours, they became concerned and asked a neighbor to help check on her. The pair discovered both Ferraro and the puppy unresponsive inside the van, the outlets reported.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/-EL2fs9q00ByB8ZJjeArhTvUSgM=\/fit-in\/640x480\/Victoria-Ferraro-111426-768e506052f14cbf84ca99ba228909be.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Starr FerraroCredit: GoFundMe\" title=\"Dog Groomer Found Dead Alongside Puppy in Van After Carbon Monoxide Poisoning\" \/><figcaption><i>Victoria Starr Ferraro<br \/>Credit: GoFundMe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Bexar County Sheriff\u2019s deputies and emergency crews arrived at the home and attempted to perform lifesaving measures, but both Ferraro and the puppy were pronounced dead at the scene.<\/p>\n<p>The Bexar County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office later <a href=\"https:\/\/news4sanantonio.com\/news\/local\/mobile-dog-groomer-found-dead-alongside-puppy-in-van-identified-san-antonio-texas-bexar-county-sheriff-investigation\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">confirmed<\/a> to WOAI that Ferraro\u2019s cause of death was determined to be carbon monoxide toxicity.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities have not indicated how carbon monoxide accumulated inside the vehicle or what caused the exposure, the outlet reported.<\/p>\n<p>PEOPLE has reached out to the Medical Examiner\u2019s Office for further information.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to <a href=\"https:\/\/news4sanantonio.com\/news\/local\/she-had-a-big-heart-family-remembers-dog-groomer-killed-by-carbon-monoxide-poisoning-san-antonio-texas-investigation-police-medical-examiner-animals-caring-aunt\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">WOAI<\/a>, Ferraro\u2019s nephew, Nicco Ferraro, remembered her as a loving family member and a groomer who had a lifelong passion for animals and who recently went from owning two dogs to 10 after one of her dogs gave birth to a litter of puppies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe loved animals, particularly dogs,\u201d Nicco told the outlet. \u201c[She was] very devoted to her dogs and her family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy heart goes out to her immediate family,\u201d he added, referring to Ferraro\u2019s son, Austin. \u201cGoes out to the family who lost their dog. A lot of people consider their animals their children.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/m_y9ieTB4B2h0MLXzXybBoG5Qho=\/fit-in\/640x480\/Victoria-Ferraro-03-111426-fad22cba6e92437db25413d01716f095.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Starr Ferraro.Credit: GoFundMe\" title=\"Dog Groomer Found Dead Alongside Puppy in Van After Carbon Monoxide Poisoning\" \/><figcaption><i>Victoria Starr Ferraro.<br \/>Credit: GoFundMe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/support-victoria-ferraros-family\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\" rel=\"nofollow\">GoFundMe<\/a> established to support Ferraro\u2019s family, the 60-year-old was described as someone \u201cwho loved animals and her grandchildren more than anything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe gave so much of herself to others and asked for very little in return. Her family admired the way she lived, the love she shared, and the example she set every day,\u201d the page states.<\/p>\n<p>Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for <a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/people-news-daily-newsletter-sign-up-8692701\">PEOPLE\u2019s free daily newsletter<\/a> to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.<\/p>\n<p>Ferraro\u2019s nephew also questioned why her death happened in the first place and advocated for safety measures to be put into place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA $10 carbon monoxide alarm could have gone a long way,\u201d he said. \u201cA warning could have gone a long way. An extra exhaust vent could have gone a long way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/carbon-monoxide\/about\/index.html\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)<\/a>, carbon monoxide is a deadly, odorless and colorless gas that is often produced by household items, including gas and oil-burning furnaces and portable generators.<\/p>\n<p>Symptoms of carbon monoxide toxicity include headaches, dizziness, weakness, upset stomach, vomiting, chest pain and confusion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of different engineering solutions that could have prevented something like this,\u201d Nicco said, although the family emphasized to WOAI that they do not know what caused the exposure or whether Ferraro\u2019s employer, Dog Gone Clean, was liable.<\/p>\n<p>Dog Gone Clean did not immediately respond to PEOPLE\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHopefully we could learn from this, move on and be better from it,\u201d Nicco added.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Victoria Starr Ferraro, 60, was found unresponsive in her mobile grooming van outside a San Antonio customer\u2019s home on Nov. 11 Victoria Starr FerraroCredit: GoFundMe NEED TO KNOW A 60-year-old Texas dog groomer, Victoria Starr Ferraro, was found dead alongside a customer\u2019s puppy in her mobile grooming van on Nov. 11 Her cause of death [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-everything-else"],"wpmagazine_modules_lite_featured_media_urls":{"thumbnail":"","cvmm-medium":"","cvmm-medium-plus":"","cvmm-portrait":"","cvmm-medium-square":"","cvmm-large":"","cvmm-small":"","full":""},"categories_names":{"1":{"name":"Everything Else","link":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/category\/everything-else\/"}},"tags_names":[],"comments_number":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1364","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1364\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adsandthings.com\/winews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}