"Dixie"
From: Erica
Sent: Thursday, July 31, 2008 6:34PM 

I can't tell you what comfort it gave me to read your story about Rowdy!  I lost my 7 year old Australian Shepherd on May 15, 2008.  She initially started with a painful right front shoulder.  So painful that she was screaming in pain.  I took her to the vet and he gave her Previcox which also seemed to give her much relief.  She began to regurgitate not long after starting the drug but the vet decided it was possibly due to gastritis. 

While her leg continued to improve her breathing became more labored. Ultimately, I noticed one morning coffee ground (consistency) vomited on the rug she had been recovering on.  Her breathing was also more labored and her gums were a pale grey.  I immediately took her to the vet who admitted her for treatment.  She stayed overnight and the vet called me the next morning.  He reported that her labs weren't "too bad" and that he was going to keep her and give her gut a rest while providing her with IV fluids and a coating agent for suspected gastritis.  This was at approx 9am.  At 4pm I received a phone call at work.  The vet simply stated that he was sorry but that Dixie had suffered a cardiac arrest and had died.  I was DEVASTATED!!  I HAVE NEVER FELT SO GUILTY IN MY LIFE! 

When I asked him what had happened he stated that the only way he would know would be if he performed a necropsy.  I didn't want my dog butchered and it wouldn't bring her back.

To top it all off, when my father and son went to pick up Dixie's body for burial the vet's office told him they would not release her body until I paid the outstanding balance of $65 and some change.  The loss of my dog's life was cheapened by this.  I had to make the payment over the phone while my son and father sat with her frozen, dead body.

If this was how money affected their practice I wondered how their cheapness might have affected how they provided care to my beloved Dixie.  I still cry about this.  I can't even tell the story without crying because I am overcome with guilt.  While I am sorry that someone has had to endure this profound loss I am also comforted to know that I am not alone.

How can I spread the word about this? How can I make this particular vet (whom I will NEVER use nor recommend again) learn from what he did so it doesn't happen to anyone else??  How do I obtain a case number with Merial?

Sadly,
Erica