| Complaint: | Complaint 21-130 |
|---|---|
| Respondent: | Makenzie Kurth |
| Premises: | Queen Creek Veterinary Clinic |
The complainant says she took her dog to Queen Creek for dog bite wounds; she relates her dog was bleeding pools of blood and in distress. She said that a staff member came out and said the dog was fine without doing an exam or even taking vitals; the staff member allegedly informed her they were 22 out of 25 waiting patients. She requested the dog be reevaluated and was again told the dog was fine; she also says the dog's gums were pale and the dog was becoming lethargic. She was apparently told that the dog would have to wait until the end of the day; she says she asked when it would become a serious emergency and got no answer so she took the dog to AVECCC. She claims that AVECCC took the dog in immediately and spent 12 hours there until they could do a surgery. Follow-up was provided by her regular veterinarian. She claims that both providers said it was serious "level 1 trauma" and that he should never have been overlooked.
Kurth says that the complainant purported to be a human nurse and used medical terms like "bleeding out," "triage," and "critical condition." She tells us that the complainant refused to bring the dog into the clinic so not one but two skilled assistants evaluated the dog and found him to be doing well. She also says that they offered to have the dog evaluated by Erin McGree, a veterinarian, but that if she said the dog was stable the dog would have to wait. The complainant allegedly said that she would take the dog elsewhere and file a board complaint. Kurth says that she was present in the building that day but not involved in the case; however, once she heard the complainant threatening a lawsuit or Board complaint, she took charge and informed all staff to start a file on the complainant and record everytihng that was said and everything they saw about the dog. She says that since there was no examination performed on the dog they have no medical records. She does say that she received and reviewed medical records from AVECCC (one wonders about why AVECCC sent those records over given the rest) that say the dog was doing well and the complainant was embellishing the claims of life-threatening injury. She also says that the complainant didn't actually say what her complaint was aside from the long wait time; we conclude by being told that they did nothing wrong, and even if they did, nothing they did would run afoul of Arizona law.
The Investigative Committee said this was just a case of the complainant being unhappy at having to wait. They also said that the complainant had to wait at the other clinic too.
In fairness, Kurth's clinic may have a different definition of stable than most of the rest of us following along at home. In 21-88 her clinic allegedly watched a retired detective's dog lose the ability to walk over four hours, then planned to file a cronyism complaint against the Maricopa County cops who came to investigate her on an animal cruelty charge.
It's also worth pointing out that, at least judging by the complaints we have on file, the veterinary profession as a whole seems to struggle with triage practices. Pets seem to have a stubborn habit of being evaluated as more-or-less okay and being sent away or going home to roll over dead.
| Source: | October 10, 2021 AM Investigative Committee Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| David Stoll | Respondent Attorney |
| Makenzie Kurth | Respondent |
| Roll Call: | |
| Carolyn Ratajack | Aye |
| Christina Tran | Absent |
| Jarrod Butler | Aye |
| Robert Kritsberg | Aye |
| Steve Seiler | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
| Source: | November 11, 2021 Board Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| David Stoll | Respondent Attorney |
| Proposed By: | Jessica Creager |
| Seconded By: | Darren Wright |
| Roll Call: | |
| Craig Nausley | Aye |
| Darren Wright | Aye |
| J Greg Byrne | Aye |
| Jane Soloman | Absent |
| Jessica Creager | Aye |
| Jim Loughead | Aye |
| Nikki Frost | Absent |
| Robyn Jaynes | 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.