My Cat Kitten was blinded because of a bad veternarian overdosing her with Baytril

Margd said:

I was just curious how you found out the vet had used the wrong vaccine because my records for Paul and Chula just show the lot number. I didn't know about the cancer link when my guys got their vaccinations so I am just hoping for the best.

Really hope Mook is okay. But grrrr that you have to even think about it.

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Under product name there were thee boxes to put down the first three letters of the manufacturers name.  I then found an online PDF that listed all rabies vaccines manufactured. There's only one that matches and it sure isn't what I specifically requested.  She flat out lied to me. I have requested all of Kittens and Mook's  records from her and she has yet to produce them. For me or the pet insurance I bought. They've made two direct requests to her now. I feel like I handed the care of my baby over to a monster.

Thanks for letting me know about the vaccines.

It is really stupid of her not to cooperate with the pet insurance requests. A judge is going to see that as petty obstructionism. It does not reflect well on her at all.

Margd said:

Thanks for letting me know about the vaccines.

It is really stupid of her not to cooperate with the pet insurance requests. A judge is going to see that as petty obstructionism. It does not reflect well on her at all.

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She might not have a reflection.

Kittens Mom said:

She might not have a reflection.

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Just got done printing a million pages it seems to make up 3 packets. One to extend the complaint made to the SVB, one to the AG and another to the Governors office.

I also made a call to Putney that makes generic enrofloxacin to make a positive ID on exactly what was in the Rx bottle marked Baytril. It was indeed their generic product. I registered the overdose with them and they'll file I think she said with the FDA and call me back with a report # so I can include it in the continuing saga of My What A Bad Vet You Are. I should probably call Bayer and let them know she's putting generics in a bottle and using their trademarked name. BTW It was still 68 mg.

I still have to attach notes and explanations , most of those just need to be printed out. We are only going to file in small claims over the overdose resulting in blindness. Not a good idea to muddy the waters unless of course the vet herself wants to bring it up.

So the extended or separate complaint depending on how the SVB wants to classify it is off in the mail.

To anyone who is thinking why does this take so long. The law has very few option when you pet is killed or injured by a veterinarian you want to use great care in how you present your case because aside from the SVB and small claims there are few options that don't start running into the thousands and require hiring a lawyer to have any chance of proceeding in higher courts. The only sentiment I allowed in this whole package is a small picture of Kitten on the cover page. I wanted in some small way to remind these professionals that she was a real living breathing creature.

I spent many hours reading and looking for ' proof '. Which is something I an not qualified to do. It was important for me to remember that these are practicing veterinarians sitting on this board. So I presented the best case and included all the information I had and put it in their hands in the hopes that they would see with even greater clarity the chain of events that led to Kitten losing her life. One thing that helped me greatly was to picture Kitten as an actual human child and what would happen in that case. I would have lawyers lined up around the block. It would not be on myself and my husband to put the case together and present it to the medical board. While I don't want to make an absolute comparison to anyone who has lost their own child you can see that there is a great disparity between how we view our pets and how the law lags behind.  Worse the veterinarians know how hard and expensive it is to prove a case against them. I don't think a DVM at the end of a name should act as a shield for animal abuse.

At the very least having to answer to these new complaints is going to make it rough going for her. And everything we put in there is true or based on our honest opinion.

I truly wish she had just settled in the beginning. We would still hold her at least partially accountable for losing Kitten but would have likely not pursed it.

There are rules in life. Know when to be satisfied with what you get and know when to strap on your body armor and go to war.  In my mind she choose war. She has had since the end of August to contact us and try and make some amends. Which as pissed as we are would still be preferable to all of this. I don't believe for one second she going to reach out by the 10th. Professionals clean their messes up as quickly as possible. The only reason to wait until the 10th would be a stalling tactic or game playing.

I just finished reading this thread @kittensmom.  I admire your fight and hope this vet loses her license before this happens to another pet.

I would also like to suggest that you let Bayer know about this.  They have the money and will go after her.  It's giving their product a bad name.  I am assuming the reason the generic was put in the Baytril bottle was so she could charge more for it.  There is no other reason not to say this is a generic for such and such.

Handsome Kitty said:

 
I just finished reading this thread @kittensmom.  I admire your fight and hope this vet loses her license before this happens to another pet.

I would also like to suggest that you let Bayer know about this.  They have the money and will go after her.  It's giving their product a bad name.  I am assuming the reason the generic was put in the Baytril bottle was so she could charge more for it.  There is no other reason not to say this is a generic for such and such.

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Thank you. I contacted Putney yesterday and got a positive ID on the drug in the bottle. That also generated a FDA overdose report in a data base. Believe me Bayer is on my list. I just wanted to know what was in that bottle.  I'm hoping Bayer takes issue with using their trademark name on generics. I don't believe there is a company connection.

As to it happening to someone else. It probably has. One I got lucky and put the puzzle together. Second I am not easily intimidated. And third there is nothing that makes me angrier than to mess with my pets.

I highly doubt that Kitten is the only victim.  One of the things you have to do when filing with the SVB is be very specific about what you are filing a complaint about. I have a four page list stapled to the complaint along with all the more detailed information,  Her medical records and all the correspondence such as it was. We can only hope for some measure of justice.

Kittens Mom said:

We went and filed in our local magistrate court today. Having her served by the sheriff.

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Good. What happens next?

Margd said:

Good. What happens next?

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Most likely she won't be served until tomorrow. I'll get a phone call from the sheriff and a copy of the form filled out when someone is served. She then has 20 days to respond of face a default judgment in the amount I can prove. She can file an answer and dispute the claim. She can simply settle or she can find something stupid to file a countersuit over. It didn't say 20 working days so that would drag this out to Feb 3.

We had to drive all the way to the county seat today to the sheriffs office to hand over the paperwork so the summons can be served. We could have had a friend do it but considering the issues we've had communicating with her I can see nothing but trouble coming from that.  My phone number is on the summons she can call if she wants. It's beyond the point where we have any obligation to try and reason with her. 

As a last resort I'll drive a friend out to where her house is. Yes I went online and ran a good background check , and have them serve her at home with a camcorder running. We have a lot of friends who want to see us get some justice for our little cat.

Just wanted to clarify something . We are suing for the vet bills from the overdose that caused her vision loss. We have put together a complaint to the SVB for her death.

Neither of us would do this unless we truly felt she is culpable in our loss. We are indeed grieving angry pet owners. But to accuse a vet of being responsible for killing an animal through malpractice and negligence is a very serious thing to do. As much as we loath and do indeed hate this vet we would not go to the extreme of making things up or look for a scapegoat to make us feel better. We certainly aren't making ourselves feel better pursing this in either venue.

So we have a court case about the overdose and two complaints filed with the SVB. One for the vision loss and one for her death.

If we simply wanted a vendetta the internet would have provided ample opportunity to make it hell for her to even pick up her phone or have a FB page.  We would just like some accountability for what happened.

There is a warm fluffy body that should be sitting on the kitchen table right about now wanting a treat and them moving to the breakfast bar corner that was hers to wait for her daddy to get up. There is a giant roadrunner out in the front trees that she was never able to see because her eyes were stolen. There is an empty sunbeam that warms the floor where she always curled up. That face of hers peeking over the edge of the bed to see if her favorite spot was free.

I was also asked what happens if every ruling goes against you. It is what it is. If the SVB can find she's not responsible for blinding our cat then we need to find a higher power to appeal this to. If a judge cannot read three vet reports and the manufacturer warnings on this drug and then look at the dose the vet prescribed we'll find a way to keep it going. I wish she would just settle. But we're willing to be the pain in her backside that never goes away if need be.

Had the H call the sheriff today. The veterinarian was served on the 22nd of January , 2016. She has 20 days to respond. I'm unclear if that's linear of working days.

As always we hope to just settle this.

Maybe now she will take you seriously.  I'm sure she figured if she stone-walled you long enough you would give up.  Hah.  Little did she know!    Every time I read about this, I just shake my head in amazement.  You've got her dead to rights on the overdose and she knows it.  You aren't asking for her first born child in damages.  Why not just take responsibility, pay up and move on?   And what kind of vet doesn't feel terrible for injuring a patient entrusted to their care and want to try to make amends?  It's all very puzzling. 

Margd said:

 
Maybe now she will take you seriously.  I'm sure she figured if she stone-walled you long enough you would give up.  Hah.  Little did she know!    Every time I read about this, I just shake my head in amazement.  You've got her dead to rights on the overdose and she knows it.  You aren't asking for her first born child in damages.  Why not just take responsibility, pay up and move on?   And what kind of vet doesn't feel terrible for injuring a patient entrusted to their care and want to try to make amends?  It's all very puzzling. 

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To say the least we're confused. And hurt. It's a constant digging at wounds that still bleed easily. We have been very careful in what we are asking for. And of course now there is the cost of filing and serving added to the bill.  We paid the sheriffs dept to deliver the summons because we wanted to make sure it was done properly. She has had our phone number and mailing address from the beginning.

She sort of pushed us into a corner. Take it and move on or stand up and be the voice of our cat.

Kittens Mom said:

 
She sort of pushed us into a corner. Take it and move on or stand up and be the voice of our cat.

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Exactly!  Little did she know what fierce advocates you and your husband would be for dear little Kitten!  Hopefully, she's beginning to get it. 

Margd said:

 
Exactly!  Little did she know what fierce advocates you and your husband would be for dear little Kitten!  Hopefully, she's beginning to get it. 

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It has been the vets job from the beginning to reach out to us. Not to have to chase her down with a summons. I would have been glued to my cell phone that day waiting for the call from the pet owners. The driving force here has always been that she doesn't care what happened to Kitten. What's worse is since she was listed as Kitten's vet the VCA sent her medical records to her. She knows what happened.  We're one step from suing her staff for their roll in this. I don't care if it's for the figurative dollar. If they hold a state license that could result in a sanction showing up on their record.

Now to be honest this fiasco cost us a lot of money. And I don't see a reason the person who caused it should ante up.  This really has reached the level of twilight zone material.

Kittens Mom said:

 
Here is my original thread about my cat being blinded by Baytril. It was never intended to become a blog about her last week of life with us. But it did. She was euthanized yesterday due to liver failure.( much more complicated than that but enough information to understand it became the main focus of the thread). There is a link to a rainbow bridge. But Kittens story is not over. The wrong inflicted on her has not been set right. The veterinarian who gave my 13lb cat 68 mg of Baytril per day has declared it was fine to do so, no wrong doing and scuttled behind a lawyer like a cowardly whipped dog. I cannot let rest the issue of the medical battery inflicted on her in those last months of life. Most of her sight. Bayer has made it clear on every label the correct dose / maximum dose that is safe for a feline and why. We are going to be forced into suing this DVM for the only thing we seem to be able to recover. KItten's resulting vet bills. And to aggressively pursue our claim of malpractice through the State Veterinary Board.  It matters not that her incinerated remains will soon be on my desk in an urn or I wish still sitting on the kitchen table at this hour using her infra red eye lasers to burn holes in my back waiting for her breakfast.  I have since realized that not only did this DVM blind my cat she failed to treat her ulcerated eyes and the drug in the Rx bottle labeled as a brand name drug is actually a generic form. Why is this wrong. Baytril is a name patented by a company.  Why does that bother me. When people show such unethical behavior I wonder what else they are up to. Consider one clinic we have used before that said they don't even prescribe this class of drugs to cats for an URI. I get small town , not even really a town here, vets. They often have no more than an x-ray machine but usually a full pharmacy of safe reliable species safe drugs. Is this vet unable to afford to keep her supplies stocked ? Should a vet be able to smile, take your money and then go back and see what she has left in the cupboard without disclosing to you the pet owner this is all they have on hand.

Looking back at this I also realized she gave no warning about what to watch for on this drug. No take home sheet for home care. All of this escaped us at the onset. She seemed like such a caring person. Bundy was charming too.

So I can't eulogize Kitten or lay her life story down in peace while this is unsettled. She was a baby when my beloved Arab mare Nikki passed. I often called Kitten my heartbeat. We shared an incredible bond. Today my heartbeat is silent. I cannot change that. We can pursue a bad DVM.

I should disclose that because we noticed an issue with the Baytril we took Kitten to a vet hospital and she did retain some of her sight. But she didn't have to lose any of it. Over twice the safe dose and we have never been able to determine the dose given in a shot during her vet visit.

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You should hold off on cremating her, if you can. If all else fails the body can be used as forensic evidence to prove your claims.

Tallyollyopia said:

 
You should hold off on cremating her, if you can. If all else fails the body can be used as forensic evidence to prove your claims.

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We considered that. For our own sanity balanced with the actual recovery if we won on her death we decided to cremate her rather than deal with her being used as evidence. It was a hard choice. In the end we went with respecting Kittens remains as the beloved cherished pet she was. We have sufficient evidence to prove the vet is responsible for the vision loss.

We do not regret this decision. The thought of being kept preserved along with a  necropsy was the limit for our endurance. We did make available to the SVB all of her records and our own personal evidence and they will do what they do.

There is what you know and what you can prove. We have kept our claim to the provable documented evidence that the vet giving an overdose is the cause of vision loss. If we should get a ruling from the SVB supporting our claim she is responsible for her death I see nothing that would not allow us to pursue that and likely in a higher court.

For all the sharing here we are very private people. What we found when our vet had stolen our pets vision was a system that allows for almost nothing but the vet bills. Aside from perhaps a sanction from peers on a SVB there really is nothing to shut down bad vets. And she knows it and counted on us to just go away. We choose to take on the part of Kittens malpractice that is as close to cut and dried as you can get. you give a 14lb aprox cat 68 mg of enrofloxacin a day and likely an overdose calculated by the same person via injection with the warnings clear on every bottle , web page and via the manufacturer not to exceed 5mg per kilo and the cat suddenly develops vision issues.  And we have the ophthalmologists report to back us up. I think the per lb  is 2.25 per lb. The vet screwed the pooch and should have just paid up.

Kittens Mom said:

 
We considered that. For our own sanity balanced with the actual recovery if we won on her death we decided to cremate her rather than deal with her being used as evidence. It was a hard choice. In the end we went with respecting Kittens remains as the beloved cherished pet she was. We have sufficient evidence to prove the vet is responsible for the vision loss.

We do not regret this decision. The thought of being kept preserved along with a  necropsy was the limit for our endurance. We did make available to the SVB all of her records and our own personal evidence and they will do what they do.

There is what you know and what you can prove. We have kept our claim to the provable documented evidence that the vet giving an overdose is the cause of vision loss. If we should get a ruling from the SVB supporting our claim she is responsible for her death I see nothing that would not allow us to pursue that and likely in a higher court.

For all the sharing here we are very private people. What we found when our vet had stolen our pets vision was a system that allows for almost nothing but the vet bills. Aside from perhaps a sanction from peers on a SVB there really is nothing to shut down bad vets. And she knows it and counted on us to just go away. We choose to take on the part of Kittens malpractice that is as close to cut and dried as you can get. you give a 14lb aprox cat 68 mg of enrofloxacin a day and likely an overdose calculated by the same person via injection with the warnings clear on every bottle , web page and via the manufacturer not to exceed 5mg per kilo and the cat suddenly develops vision issues.  And we have the ophthalmologists report to back us up. I think the per lb  is 2.25 per lb. The vet screwed the pooch and should have just paid up.

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Yes. I'm sorry, around here if a doctor (or vet) screws up royally like that the paperwork "disappears" beyond recovery. I'm glad that you have paper proof that allows you to prove your claim without having to resort to the remains of Kitten, and I'm sorry for your loss. I hope you manage to shake the vet into realizing that she should be more diligent and responsible when it comes to caring for pets.