Spay surgery gone wrong

[coppperbelle]

My daughter's boyfriend adopted a dog from the SPCA a few months ago. Last night they brought her in for her spay surgery and today received a call that she had died of a stroke on the operating table.
I know this happens sometimes but it is so tragic and I am so devastated. This pup was only 10 months old and extremely healthy. The SPCA wants them to pay for an autopsy.
I have so many questions but if anyone can enlighten me I would appreciate it.
little one

C

[luckypenny]

That is so sad coppperbelle. I'm so sorry.

How do they know the puppy had a stroke if they didn't preform an autopsy? If your daughter's bf chooses to have one done, better he goes elsewhere. I think the hospital in St. Hyacinthe does it for less than a regular vet. I'm thinking the pup may have had a reaction to the anaesthesia which does occur sometimes.

little girl.

[coppperbelle]

They want to do the autopsy there and they talked about compensation or something of the sort. The surgery was done at the SPCA and I have no idea how much they charge for an autopsy although at this point it changes nothing.
I too wondered who they knew she had a stroke.

[luckypenny]

Hmmm, it shouldn't be their choice. It's her owner's choice. When this had happened to friends of mine, they brought their dog elsewhere for the autopsy without telling the new vet where their dog had died (this was the result of a botched surgery though). They felt that another vet hospital would be impartial and they would be better able to accept the results of the autopsy. In this particular case, the former vet had repaid all expenses. It still doesn't change the sad outcome though, I know. I guess it all depends on how your daughter's boyfriend feels about it.

[krdahmer]

[BMDLuver]

If the SPCA wants an autopsy done, then they should pay for it and it should not be conducted at their facility but rather at St. Hy. Also, if the dog has been frozen now, then all bloodwork is not viable. Basically, the SPCA owes the couple another dog of their choice when they are ready to adopt again at no charge. I would suggest if they do adopt again that they have their sterilising done elsewhere. Please send my condolences to them for their loss. I've been there and it's such a shock for something to happen during what should be a routine surgery.

[coppperbelle]

Originally Posted by luckypenny

Hmmm, it shouldn't be their choice. It's her owner's choice. When this had happened to friends of mine, they brought their dog elsewhere for the autopsy without telling the new vet where their dog had died (this was the result of a botched surgery though). They felt that another vet hospital would be impartial and they would be better able to accept the results of the autopsy. In this particular case, the former vet had repaid all expenses. It still doesn't change the sad outcome though, I know. I guess it all depends on how your daughter's boyfriend feels about it.

I don't think they insisted the autopsy be done there. I will suggest to him that if he decides to go ahead with it he bring it elsewhere. I don't know if he could handle transporting the body though.
This boyfriend is like a son in law to me and the pup was like a grandchild, odd as that may seem. When I was on vacation I found a car magnet that said "my grandchild is a dog". I almost bought it and am glad now I didn't.

[growler~GateKeeper]

so sorry to hear of the loss of a beloved pet

[Frenchy]

I'm so sorry coppperbelle :sad: whatever happens now should be your SIL's decision. And I wouldn't have the autopsy done at the spca either (if he decides to go down that road) And yes , if he does get another dog , he should take the dog to another vet (that's how I did it for Daisy) .

Again , I am so sorry :sad:

[Chelly-Belly]

Oh, i'm so sorry to hear that.

Yes, please choose another vet in the future.

RIP, little one. You are in doggy heaven now.

[amw9490]

Sorry to hear about your 4-legged friend. My puppy was 6 months and developed a blood clot and we had to put her down this morning.

[coppperbelle]

Originally Posted by amw9490

Sorry to hear about your 4-legged friend. My puppy was 6 months and developed a blood clot and we had to put her down this morning.

I am sorry to hear about your puppy.

[Love4himies]

So sorry to hear about your daugher's boyfriend's dog. How sad

Little puppy.

[badger]

Sorry for your loss. A simple spay on a young dog
I have heard (someone correct me if I'm wrong) that the SPCA vet clinic has a poor reputation. Were they obligated to go there?
The SPCA has some nerve asking your daughter and her boyfriend to pay for an autopsy - it happened on THEIR premises - and yes, it should be done elsewhere.
I agree that they should have their choice of a new dog at no cost, even though it does nothing to resolve the pain they feel at losing her.
Notwithstanding Mr. B, I have alot of sympathy for the people who work there, but they should damn well stand up and take responsibility when things go wrong.

[sways_bodyguard]

OH my GOD...
im so sorry to hear that :sad:
to coppperbelle's puppy
to amw9490's puppy

[rainbow]

I am so sorry for your loss.

I agree the SPCA had a lot of nerve asking your daughters BF to pay for an autopsy. It is their responsibility and they should also refund the money paid for the adoption/spay fees.

[Dr Lee]

Originally Posted by coppperbelle

today received a call that she had died of a stroke on the operating table.

SPCA wants them to pay for an autopsy.

I am so sorry for your loss. The loss of a family member is so hard.

There have been some comments on how they would know if a stroke happened without an autopsy (or in the veterinary terms, a necropsy). They would not know. Sudden death on an anesthetic table can occur for many reasons: anesthetic reaction, congenital heart disease, heartworm disease, vascular event (stroke), other pre-existing disorders, etc... One cause of anesthetic death is called vaso-vagal response where the endotracheal tube (the plastic tube that is placed into the wind pipe to assist with ventilation) can stimulate the vagus nerve which runs in the neck and cause the heart to stop. There is no method of determining if this is going to happen and not possible to avoid. (Not using an endotracheal tube is NOT recommended).

If I am undertanding the story correctly, the SPCA has recommended that the owner of the pet pays for a necropsy? They have to for liability reasons. Everytime a patient dies in the hospital, even the high risk pet that the owners and vet knew might not make it through the surgery but had no alternatives, the veterinarian should offer a necropsy. If a necropsy is not recommended/offered then there is some liability issues for not offering it since if the case goes to court, the owner will need that necropsy report. If the case is not going legal, the necropsy doesn't help usually help anyone.

Also a properly performed necropsy is very expensive. Our laboratory charges $2400.00 - that is the charge to the hospital submitting the patient. This includes the transport, gross dissection by a boarded pathologist, histopathic review by a boarded pathologist and then cremation of remains.

The reason that the SPCA and most veterinarians will not pay for necropsies on anesthetic deaths is that they are very expensive to prove what usually the veterinarian already knows which is that the patient tragically died for reasons that were out of their control. (this is an assumption for most cases - not suggesting that human error is never possible nor am I stating what did or didn't occur in your situation). The reasons for necropsy are 1) if there is going to be a law suit or 2) if the owner needs to know for piece of mind.


Again, I am very sorry for your loss, I hope that this may have answered some of the questions. My condolences to your whole family.

[coppperbelle]

Originally Posted by Dr Lee

I am so sorry for your loss. The loss of a family member is so hard.

There have been some comments on how they would know if a stroke happened without an autopsy (or in the veterinary terms, a necropsy). They would not know. Sudden death on an anesthetic table can occur for many reasons: anesthetic reaction, congenital heart disease, heartworm disease, vascular event (stroke), other pre-existing disorders, etc... One cause of anesthetic death is called vaso-vagal response where the endotracheal tube (the plastic tube that is placed into the wind pipe to assist with ventilation) can stimulate the vagus nerve which runs in the neck and cause the heart to stop. There is no method of determining if this is going to happen and not possible to avoid. (Not using an endotracheal tube is NOT recommended).

If I am undertanding the story correctly, the SPCA has recommended that the owner of the pet pays for a necropsy? They have to for liability reasons. Everytime a patient dies in the hospital, even the high risk pet that the owners and vet knew might not make it through the surgery but had no alternatives, the veterinarian should offer a necropsy. If a necropsy is not recommended/offered then there is some liability issues for not offering it since if the case goes to court, the owner will need that necropsy report. If the case is not going legal, the necropsy doesn't help usually help anyone.

Also a properly performed necropsy is very expensive. Our laboratory charges $2400.00 - that is the charge to the hospital submitting the patient. This includes the transport, gross dissection by a boarded pathologist, histopathic review by a boarded pathologist and then cremation of remains.

The reason that the SPCA and most veterinarians will not pay for necropsies on anesthetic deaths is that they are very expensive to prove what usually the veterinarian already knows which is that the patient tragically died for reasons that were out of their control. (this is an assumption for most cases - not suggesting that human error is never possible nor am I stating what did or didn't occur in your situation). The reasons for necropsy are 1) if there is going to be a law suit or 2) if the owner needs to know for piece of mind.


Again, I am very sorry for your loss, I hope that this may have answered some of the questions. My condolences to your whole family.

It did, thank you.