Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, My name is Kathy and I am new to this message board. I am not sure if this is where I need to post my questions. Any help would be appreciated. My Sweet Pea, had a scope done at a vet hospital. Two weeks later she was sooo sick I took her to my vet who had to put her down. I had a necropcy done. She had a tear in her duodenum, which connects the stomach to the intestine. I haven't started missing her as I am in shock and don't know how to approach the vet hospital. I believe my Sweet Pea would be alive, if not for their error.

Hi Kathy,

Welcome to the Board, although I'm sorry to meet you under these circumstances.

There is nothing more difficult than losing one of our babies, and when it appears that the loss was avoidable, it is far worse.

It's really impossible to say what really happened during Sweet Pea's procedure. It can absolutely be the fault of the vet who performed the procedure, or it could have to do with something else, or a combination of both.

The reason why the scope was done in the first place could have something to do with what happened. Obviously, Sweet Pea must have been having gastrointestinal problems of some kind. She could have had an ulcer in the duodenum, or it's possible that a biopsy was taken and she was unable to heal for some reason. If she had stitches, they could have broken down.

If there was just an obvious tear, with evidence of spillage of contents into the abdomen, and nothing to point to an ulcer or some other abnormality, I lean toward the vet being at fault.

Now I'd like to share something. I once had a cat go into acute kidney failure as a result of an antibiotic he was given by my vet. I ended up having him put to sleep as a result. It wasn't easy and it took some time but I was able to forgive the vet. I realized that this wasn't intentional, but it was the cat's reaction to the drug that was the problem.

Sweet Pea's story is far different, yet there are similarities.
I think that in your case I would request all the records from where the procedure was done, and have your regular vet review them. Then he or she can compare the records to what was seen during the necropsy and then you can decide what to do from there. It may well be a good idea to file a complaint.

Please feel free to also check out our PetSupport.net site. You are most welcome to post there also.

Regards,
PHKitkat