NewPort Center Animal Hospital

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
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*** ***Dr*** has managed to wrap his theories/excuses in a nice bow. Dr*** has managed to wrap his theories/excuses in a nice bow. Unfortunately, none of them address the concern with honesty.Theory #1: My two canines are to blame for my third canine's injuries.I refer to this theory as a distraction because it addresses issues never brought to my attention nor was it ever part of the communication between Dr***, his staff, or myselfThey have been boarded at the Newport Pet Hotel before and never were labeled as "caution - warning that the pets may bite," and it certainly wasn't brought to my attention on the visit in question. These two canines are at fault as they were displaying aggressiveness towards my third canineWhy then wasn't this shared with me so that I could have made other arrangements, perhaps separate quarters? Why endanger all three of my caninesIs their policy to ignore when canines may injure themselves or others? The canines in question, *** *** ***, are seniors and barely have any teeth leftFor them to be responsible for ***'s horrendous injuries is impossibleNot reporting this behavior to me was negligent.Theory #2: *** was aggressive*** is a puppy who loves to play, this was shared with the staffWith this knowledge, wouldn't the staff be trained to realize that on his first visit he should be watched and not merely thrown in a playgroup without some observation involved?Prior to his boarding he attended an all day playgroup for over a week where he received a daily report card"Playful, sweet, loving, friendly," were some of the characteristics used to describe him, and thank God still are, the experience has not altered his sweet demeanorNEVER aggressiveFor in Dr***'s own words, "not in a dog-aggressive manner, but rather true playful manner." If this behavior was well documented with my other two canines, as described by Dr***, then why was it failed to be used when it came to ***? According to Dr***, *** was in the playgroup for merely a few seconds, and in that period he was branded as aggressiveHis injuries belie the time frame.Theory #3: Hotspots/Self-inflicted injuriesThis theory is the most disturbing for it involves my former vet, Dr***, and my thoughts have been shared with herI'm sorry if this situation is uncomfortable for you, in the event Dr*** is a personal friend, or merely because of your sense of professional courtesy and loyaltyHowever, "right" should trump everything, and I have not represented the facts or myself with nothing but the truth and integrityNot once did we discuss the fact that the injuries resulted from anything but a dog's bites, and certainly no mention of allergies was even broached because no second opinion needed to be offeredHe was brought to you for what was a vicious attack and was treated for nothing else but his bite woundsThere was one wound in particular (located on his neck) that caused you concern and therefore you shaved the area and administered an antibiotic shotThe photos do an excellent job of supporting the facts and clearly represent the individual punctures caused by caninesNone of the wounds resulted from allergies, hot spots, or were self-inflicted by ***'s scratching." It is disheartening that Dr*** would attempt to change the facts in order to protect Dr***, but that is exactly what has happenedThere's a lot going on here; the lack of professional integrity and responsibility being two.Whatever, theories/excuses Dr*** wishes to whitewash this sad situation with, he cannot explain the obvious...NEGLIGENCEFor whatever reason, it was brushed under the carpet, and not once in all my calls (almost daily) were any of his scenarios brought to my attentionWith the exception of one employee assuring me that they would attempt *** attending playgroup "the next day, because he was a little overwhelmed." Overwhelmed...NOT aggressive! They allowed me to pay my account and NOT once brought to my attention that *** had been attacked, but let me discover his injuries on my own. Someone had to have cleaned him up, because the severity of his injuries would have involved blood...lots of blood, and he was completely clean with no evidence of dry blood when I picked him up, which is why I didn't notice the injuries until I was away from the facility. Instead of being responsible, this facility attempted, and still is, covering up an incident that could simply have been brought to my attention when it occurred so it could have been handled in the best interest of all my caninesInstead, all three were placed in dangerIn ***'s pain and confusion, he could have seriously injured my other two pets.Dr*** points out the waiver signed relieving the facility from any responsibility for injuryEven if that's the case, it should not relieve a doctor from ethically doing the right thingHowever, it goes beyond the waiver, for pet owners have been awarded a small victory.REFERENCE - CALIFORNIA LAW: Pet Boarding Facilities, effective January 1, (** *** *** *** ***)(i) Ensure that the owner of a pet is notified immediately that his or her pet is sick or injured unless the owner has indicated in writing that notification of any, or a particular, type of illness or injury is not required.(f) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a pet boarding facility operator that causes or allows harm or injury to an animal, or allows an animal to be subject to an unreasonable risk of harm or injury is guilty of a misdemeanor

Owner states she’s boarded all pets at our facility with caution warnings on her charts. Yes indeed we’veboarded two out of her three pets in the past which are “R[redacted].” They are what we designated“caution” pets for the safety of the caretakers. This designation has been made by previous caretakersat this facility as well as doctors. Any animal that displays any type of aggression towards a caretakergets labeled “caution”. At the owner’s request the three dogs were housed together againstrecommendation. Regardless if dogs are missing teeth, one tooth (especially the canine teeth) can causedamage.Owner states she went to another playgroup facility and did great there. Although he may have donewell at a different facility, different and new settings can bring about different behaviors. We do havetwo playgroup attendants who monitor the assessments. At any moment the pet displays anyaggression towards any other pet in our playgroup they are immediately removed. We do not run therisk if any of our dogs becoming injured. If at any moment a pet is injured, it is our policy to rush the petto our veterinarian for further treatment. Playful aggression can also be dangerous which is in [redacted]’snature and which is why he was removed from playgroup. Our doctor is professionally trained in animalbehavior.Dr. [redacted] recorded allergies/hotspot as one of her differential diagnoses. Dr. [redacted] spoke with Dr. [redacted]once and both can concur that there has never been communication between them regarding any othercase in the past. Dr. [redacted] said the wounds were insignificant enough that they did not require surgery.No source of injury has been identified at this time. No contact was made with this pet in playgroup. Wewould describe this as playful aggressiveness or roughhousing/horseplay injury if it did in fact occur atthis facility. It is our theory that any injuries [redacted] may have received were from the owner’s other pets.This is a more likely scenario. If in fact it occurred at this facility, the injuries went unnoticed.Sometimes small injuries are not immediately visible due to hair covering them. Treatment was offeredwhen owner called noting injuries and was declined by the owner.

August 11, 2017Newport Center Annal Hospital 1333 Avocado Avenue Newport Beach, CA92660D [redacted]The owner's three dogs were boarding at our facility from July 1-8. A 10-month-old large breed puppy named [redacted] is the pet in question, it was requested that [redacted] be boarded along with his two elderly...

Chihuahua housemates, [redacted] At many times, our staff noticed [redacted] jumping and playbiting toward these two smaller breed dogs; however, it was not in a dog-aggressive manner, but rather tra playful manner, This being said, the Chihuahuas became quite agitated by [redacted]'s behavior and would growland snap at him. Furthermore, [redacted] previous medical charts are both noted with a "caution" warning that the pets may bite. It is theorized and highly possible that [redacted]'s wounds could have been caused by his own housemates, which may happen to animals when they are in closed quarters and out of their element in a boarding facility. When an animal is placed in a different environment, their behavior can change dramatically from what their owners are used to observing.When [redacted] was presented to playgroup, our caretakers immediately noticed that the stimulation was too intense for him to handle, as he appeared to display aggressive behavior towards a few of the other playgroup members. We realize that this is not in his nature, and that playgroup can be a stressful situation and may bring about unusual behaviors. For this reason, [redacted] was subsequently taken out of playgroup. Both caretakers present informed me that there was no contact with any other animals; and upon leaving boarding no injuries were noted on [redacted].Dr. [redacted] who examined [redacted] and is the owner's primary veterinarian confirmed that there were small wounds and abrasions on the ears that resembled injuries from playbiting. She assured us that these wounds should heal with the treatment she provided. Dr, [redacted] did inform us that some ofthese wounds could be due to allergies as she referred to some of them as hotspots. We do not demy that [redacted] suffered injuries, but as far as the source or cause it is still unknown.A Waver was signed relieving this facility of any responsibility for injury, We recommended th? t [redacted] not be housed with his housemates in the future when they are boarding. We offered to pay for medical expenses and recheck [redacted]'s injuries for further follow-up. The request was made foralboarding/walking/feeding/playgroup charges to be returned inful for the 7 days, This r denied based on the fact that these services were provided. equest WasNewport Center Animal Hospital