Owner Hired Ghost Hunters to Perform Séance for 'Haunted' Pet Shop

A pet shop owner in Coventry, England requested ghost hunters to investigate her store and hold a séance after CCTV footage showed various items flying from shelves and orbs floating around the store.

43-year-old Rebecca Harrington, who runs Purdy's Pet Shop for more than two years, said the strange activity began just two months after opening. She said she checked the store's CCTV footage after customers said they saw a shadow and felt tugging.

The footage showed Harrington checking out a customer as a bag of dog treats fell off the shelf. Another clip showed a cat toy spontaneously falling off a shelf while no one was nearby.

Harrington also said a vacuum that was previously broken randomly turned on without anyone touching it. In a video, she showed an employee turn the vacuum on and off as it continued to work.

"It's off, the battery's dead, and we can't get it off," Harrington said.

After reviewing the unexplainable incidents, Harrington contacted Hideous History Walking Tours to hold a séance after she said her staff was too frightened to work alone in the store.

A séance is an attempt for a human to communicate with the spirit world. During a séance, participants assemble at either a round or oval table. Often, a medium is chosen to guide the séance. It is believed that setting the table with food can attract a spirit.

Harrington recalled an instance when some customers came into the store with their German Shepherds who became spooked and would not go near part of the shop. The dog's owners said they did not normally behave that way.

She also said that customers were complaining about feeling "tugged" and that animals were reacting strangely. Staff also witnessed "orbs" following them around the back room, Mirror reported.

The ghost hunters told Harrington her shop was haunted by the spirit of a man who used to reside in the building and was annoyed by the staff's presence.

Since the ghost hunters were familiar customers, she said they organized the séance to raise money for charity. But she did say the experience was weird and that as one of the hunters left the room, "orbs" began following her and she became distressed.

"They think it's a male that used to live here," Harrington said. "It's been a shop for the past 40 or 50 years so we think it may have been bombed in the war as Coventry was bombed heavily."

She also added she did not use to believe in ghosts and that she often finds herself trying to find logical explanations for some of the weird happenings.

After news of the séance spread, curious passersby have stopped by the pet store to see if they could witness some paranormal activity. Customers also ask if there will be another séance, but Harrington said if there is, she wants no part.

Newsweek reached out to Rebecca Harrington and Hideous History Walking Tours.