Couple euthanise sick dog, then discover pill label had another's name

A couple euthanised their long-term companion to put an end to the dog's months-long struggle with illness in its old age, only to realise they were allegedly handed the wrong pills by the hospital. The medication was meant to treat heart failure for another dog, named Romeo.

The couple's dog, Ah Bee, had taken these pills for two days before its death on Jan 7, said its owner, aesthetics doctor Donna Chow. She said the 12-year-old miniature schnauzer Ah Bee suffered from an eye disease and kidney failure.

"The whole thing was very regretful," Dr Chow, 41, told The Straits Times on Jan 18. "We were grieved beyond words about the medical negligence that has occurred and, at the same time, guilty that we were part of it."

Dr Chow lodged a complaint with the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS) and Mount Pleasant Veterinary Group (MPVG), which treated Ah Bee at its hospital in Jalan Gelenggang.

Both organisations said in separate statements that investigations into the incident are under way.

When contacted, MPVG field director Bessy Chua said: "We are taking steps to ensure our existing rigorous protocols for prescribing and dispensing medications are upheld to prevent errors."

She added that there was no reason to believe the pimobendan pills given to the dog had an adverse impact on its health.

Pimobendan is a medication used to treat dogs with heart failure, according to vet publication VCA Animal Hospitals. It stated that common side effects include decreased appetite or diarrhoea, and that these can last longer in pets with kidney disease.

Dr Chow said Ah Bee's health worsened after surgery last May to treat its poor vision and it later developed kidney failure and internal bleeding. After a discussion with the vet, her husband decided to euthanise Ah Bee when it became lethargic, refused to eat, kept vomiting and had bloody diarrhoea.

But as Dr Chow cleared out Ah Bee's medications the next morning, she noticed pimobendan tablets labelled for another dog. The delivery instructions showed that the dog was to be fed half a tablet twice daily - a total of 5mg.

Dr Chow said her family did not check the label at first as there were many tablets issued to Ah Bee. Having fed Ah Bee three doses of the pimobendan pills over two days, she feared they may have worsened its health in the dog's final days due to an overdose.

She said the hospital later acknowledged to her that the wrong medication had been issued and told her that the vet who operated on Ah Bee was not a specialist.

The hospital declined to comment on the specifics of Ah Bee's case, saying it had to adhere to the code of ethics for vets and out of respect for the family's privacy.

It later said there were no board-certified eye specialists locally at the time of Ah Bee's surgery and that Ah Bee's surgeon had carried out the surgery many times.

The ordeal prompted Ah Bee's owners to start an online petition to urge a review of the governance of pet healthcare here. The petition has garnered more than 10,400 signatures as at yesterday.

All vets and clinics here are licensed and regulated by AVS, said AVS group director Jessica Kwok.

She said AVS has been studying the need for a professional entity to improve professional standards for the sector and had engaged those in the field since early last year.

Those in the industry refrained from commenting on Ah Bee's case on the urging of AVS as investigations are ongoing.

Speaking generally, animal welfare advocate Jaipal Singh said the effects of pimobendan depends on the animal's health, dosage given and interaction with other drugs.

He urged the public not to make generalisations about vets, which can be a disservice to many professionals who work hard for animal health and welfare.

Action For Dogs president Ricky Yeo also urged owners to read the labels on all medication issued.