Inexcusable Negligence

[Xyz]

http://m.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/vets-remorse-over-cat-painkiller-death-20130613-2o601.html?post_id=832586678_10151961995746679#_=_

A Canberra vet has expressed remorse after advising a man to give his cat Nurofen.

But she says the pet was wrongly overdosed by its owner days before it died earlier this month.

Experienced Hall vet Jan Spate said she advised Mark Sowden to give his six-year-old cat Saffy – which had undergone surgery earlier in the day – a 0.5 millilitre “half dose” of the painkiller after a late-night call for help.

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Mr Sowden gave Saffy a two-millilitre dose, after calling at about 10pm on the Wednesday night.

By Thursday morning the cat was bloating and Mr Sowden said kidney failure followed, with Ms Spate putting down his beloved pet the next Monday morning.

“With hindsight I shouldn't have advised him to give it Nurofen, but he did give it much more than I advised – 2 millilitres is a big overdose,” Ms Spate said.

“I wouldn't have prescribed it if it hadn't been after hours and very late, but it's something you can give as one-offs.”

Mr Sowden has been devastated by the death, after he thought the cat was on the mend following an attack by two dogs in his front yard.

“I don't want anyone else's cat to die like that, it was the worst feeling in the world,” he said.

“I feel like an idiot, like I've killed my best mate.”

Canberra vets contacted by Fairfax Media said they had never used Nurofen for pain relief for cats.

Canberra Veterinary Clinic surgeon Vickie Saye said the clinic did not advise the use of ibuprofen – the active ingredient in Nurofen – for cats or dogs.

“We would never do that at this clinic,” Dr Saye said.

“We don't really advise ibuprofen at all – we have got a lot of pain relievers that have been tested for cats and dog and are much safer,” Dr Saye said.

“It has a higher rate of causing gastric [problems] and perforation than the other ones we use, and kidney problems.”

Dr Saye said cats were thought to be twice as sensitive to painkillers as dogs, and the operation of the after-hours' Animal Emergency Centre in Canberra meant there was no excuse to tell a pet owner to give their cat Nurofen, even late at night.

“It's completely off-label use,” she said.

The Emergency Centre senior veterinarian Madeleine Richard said she had never prescribed ibuprofen for a cat, even in a low dosage.

Dr Spate said she had advised the use of Nurofen for cats on about four occasions at a “half-dose” in emergency situations without negative results, but said she was unlikely to do so again in the future.

“Probably not for cats,” she said.

She said she would have liked to have seen the cat – a Russian blue breed – on the morning after it was fed Nurofen, and also could have done a post mortem, with kidney problems possibly caused by the dog attack.

“There was no indication of a kidney failure [on Wednesday], but a huge number of cats have early kidney failure – and the dog had the cat by the belly so I think it's 90 per cent likely that it had kidney damage,” she said.

Mr Sowden said he didn't want compensation for the death of Saffy, which he bought at six weeks' of age; he wanted the public to be aware of the danger.

“I don't want it happening to anyone else – I don't want money, I don't want anything,” he said.

“When he was on the table, the last two minutes, it brings tears to my eyes.”

[disintegratus]

I don't really think that's fair.

It was late at night, post surgery, I doubt he could have gotten his hands on anything else, nurofen was most likely all he had available to him. If he'd followed the correct dosage given him by the vet, it's likely his cat would still be alive. He gave the cat 4 times the dose advised, I can't see how it's the vets fault. Yes, it's off label use, but short of taking the cat to an emergency vet (which he obviously didn't do for whatever reason), I don't see many other options available to him.

[persephone]

How sad. The poor owner

I've never heard of ibuprofen used for cats . I was taught , that like Aspirin, it is toxic and to be avoided.

[frufru]

The vet advised a dosage in an emergency situation and the guy seriously overdosed the cat - how is it the vets fault????

[Alyosha]

The AVA need to be involved. Yet again.

[OSoSwift]

I don't see how it is the vets fault either.

Not ideal, but did he not want to take the cat to an afterhours vet for whatever reason? He overdosed the cat big time, the vet gave him the correct dosage to administer.

Admittidly Nurophen is not something most people who advise to give a cat but maybe that was what he had in the house and yes as a once off at the correct dose it wouldn't have been an issue. There is far more to this story than being told here.

He has lost his cat which is awful and I really feel for him, however I do not see that the vet is at fault on this one.

Edited June 21, 2013 by OSoSwift

[persephone]

how is it the vets fault??

perhaps , as ibuprofen is toxic?

As a professional , 'prescribing' a drug which can be lethal and trusting a distraught owner to administer it was not a responsible decision? perhaps the more responsible action would have been to advise the owner to find transport and get to a clinic.. ?

I don't know ... it's horrible,whichever way.

Edited June 21, 2013 by persephone

[OSoSwift]

It is in large or prolonged doses but not as a once off apparently.

[Dame Aussie]

I don't believe the vet should have prescribed something that could be so toxic, however they can only do so much over the phone, late at night. If it were me I would have told him to take the cat to an emergency vet for pain relief.

Also, he did give the cat four times the amount prescribed. Why?

Edited June 21, 2013 by Aussie3

[persephone]

Also, he did give the cat four times the amount prescribed. Why?

Which is why upset owners are perhaps not the best people to administer medicines which may be dangerous :( Perhaps the owner was very upset ,and not thinking clearly .....

[Dame Aussie]

Yeah maybe, that's the only reason I could think of too.

Crappy situation all round

[Alyosha]

There is good reason the other local vets are not remotely in support here. This is not a one off example of incompetence or negligence here.

[frufru]

That is a big call on a public forum ....

[emgem]

I'm sure the man was upset and not thinking clearly, but I do think the failure lies mostly with him. Quadrupling the dose of paracetamol would kill an infant, but it is sold over the counter and parents are trusted to accurately measure and dose their children.

Edited June 21, 2013 by emgem

[Dame Aussie]

I'm sure the man was upset and not thinking clearly, but I do think the failure lies mostly with him. Quadrupling the dose of paracetamol would kill an infant, but it is sold over the counter and parents are trusted to accurately measure and dose their children.

Yes, it just seems a big overdose, I could understand a little bit over, but 4 times? Maybe his sight isn't great?

Edited June 21, 2013 by Aussie3

[Salukifan]

Dr Saye said cats were thought to be twice as sensitive to painkillers as dogs, and the operation of the after-hours' Animal Emergency Centre in Canberra meant there was no excuse to tell a pet owner to give their cat Nurofen, even late at night.

Sadly, while it continues to cost $190 to walk in the door of the Animal Emergency Centre, and the first thing the Centre wants is your credit card details, some owners will seek cheaper alternatives.

On occasion, they will get precisely the result they haven't paid for.

Edited June 21, 2013 by Haredown Whippets

[Xyz]

There is good reason the other local vets are not remotely in support here. This is not a one off example of incompetence or negligence here.

Alas, so downright true...

[Jumabaar]

how is it the vets fault??

perhaps , as ibuprofen is toxic?

As a professional , 'prescribing' a drug which can be lethal and trusting a distraught owner to administer it was not a responsible decision? perhaps the more responsible action would have been to advise the owner to find transport and get to a clinic.. ?

I don't know ... it's horrible,whichever way.

But don't vets do that regularly? Yes generally with drugs that are on label for use in animals but there is a lot of fair placed in owner compliance and the owners ability to correctly medicate an animal.

Did the article indicate that the vet didn't give the owner the option to see a veterinarian? Either at their clinic on an emergency clinic? I assume I missed it.

[RazorBlade]

If you guys have a problem with Jan you should just come out and say it. The service she provides may, in some instances be unorthodox, but it has its place and is valued by her customers. It is,in many instances, the exact reason people use her.

She gave the bloke advice and he didn't follow it. Shit situation but he really should have been more careful. As someone above said, we are trusted to accurately dose this stuff to our children and the same care should have been taken when dosing it to an animal.

[mita]

I'm sure the man was upset and not thinking clearly, but I do think the failure lies mostly with him. Quadrupling the dose of paracetamol would kill an infant, but it is sold over the counter and parents are trusted to accurately measure and dose their children.

Yes. Sad as it is, for a man who so dearly loved his cat. And who was already in a state of distress because the puss had been attacked by dogs. One lesson to be learned, is to strictly stick to administration directions. Also how vulnerable to error we can be when acting under considerable distress.

It's inappropriate to draw any wider conclusions about the vet's track record, from this case.

Maybe it's just with the benefit of hindsight, but I'd say she might have stressed to the owner, the critical importance of sticking to that low dose.... & why. Because the owner had no experience with giving that med to a puss before. So I'd add a communication issue ... to one of human error.

Edited June 21, 2013 by mita