| Complaint: | Complaint 20-115 |
|---|---|
| Respondent: | Heather Perry |
| Premises: | Prescott Area Pet Emergency Hospital |
The complainant took her dog to Prescott Pet Emergency. The dog was taken in but the complainant was left in the car and did her best to explain her dog's situation to the veterinarian. She says she was charged $700 for a physical exam, blood work, and and x-ray and had no problems doing so because she just wanted to help her dog. She says they diagnosed her dog with an infection because of his fever and sent her home with pills; she notes she wouldn't have been able to give the dog pills because his teeth were clenched shut and wouldn't allow her to touch his face. When she got the dog home she discovered was that the dog's eye was bulging out and the entire side of his face was swollen. By the next morning the dog's eye was almost completely swollen shut so she took the dog to Prescott Animal Hospital. There she was told the dog had an infection in the "sinus gland" (the findings of fact state that it was a retrobulbar abscess, perhaps they said it started out from a sinus infection?) that needed to be drained. It was found on a follow-up visit the dog was now blind in that eye.
Perry starts out with some brief medical notes and then tells us that the complainant seemed to think the dog's neck was hurting. She says that she examined the dog and found no obvious cause of any of the symptoms (eating less, not acting right, holding his head differently) and recommended blood work. She also informed the complainant that since there was no obvious place to start she could do x-rays, but she'd need to x-ray the entire dog to see if anything was amiss. The bloodwork came back normal aside from a slight increase that could be suggestive of infection, so Perry suggested sending the dog home with a course of antibiotics, fluids, and rest. She also says the complainant wanted an x-ray of the neck performed and they did so. She concludes by stating she's sorry about the discomfort the dog experienced but that there was no swelling to note on exam; she can't speak to what happened once the dog was out the door.
The Investigative Committee discussion appears to have not even touched on the core portion of the complaint (the complainant noticed the dog's face and eyeball were horribly swollen as soon as she got home, but Perry and her technicians noted nothing of the sort). The Committee only mentioned that Perry was just a relief veterinarian at an emergency clinic, and that while it would have been nice to have gotten the records over to the other clinic sooner, that wasn't her responsibility.
| Source: | October 10, 2020 AM Investigative Committee Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| Heather Perry | Respondent |
| Roll Call: | |
| Carolyn Ratajack | Aye |
| Christina Tran | Aye |
| Jarrod Butler | Aye |
| Robert Kritsberg | Aye |
| Steve Seiler | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
| Source: | November 11, 2020 Board Meeting |
|---|---|
| Proposed By: | Sarah Heinrich |
| Seconded By: | Jessica Creager |
| Roll Call: | |
| Darren Wright | Aye |
| J Greg Byrne | Absent |
| Jane Soloman | Aye |
| Jessica Creager | Aye |
| Jim Loughead | Aye |
| Nikki Frost | Aye |
| Robyn Jaynes | Aye |
| Sarah Heinrich | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
The primary source for the above summary was obtained as a public record from the Arizona State Veterinary Medical Examining Board. You are welcome to review the original records and board meeting minutes by clicking the relevant links. While we endeavor to provide an accurate summary of the complaint, response, investigative reports and board actions, we encourage you to review the primary sources and come to your own conclusions. In some cases we have also been able to reach out to individuals with knowledge of specific complaints, and where possible that information will be included here.