A woman believes her 2-year-old dog was misdiagnosed after receiving treatment at Angels Vet Express and, as a result, the dog’s leg later had to be amputated.
Two weeks ago, Courtney Barron said her dog Bella suffered a deep wound and broken leg after being involved in a dog fight. After seeing visible signs of pain, Barron took Bella to Angels Vet Express in Savannah.
“We were concerned her back right leg was broken,” Barron explained. “They [Angels Vet Express] told us she had no broken bones and that her injuries should heal."
After being treated, Barron said doctors gave her healing cream to apply to Bella’s wounds and told her to return in two weeks. Barron said she immediately doubted the diagnosis.
“They definitely did not do X-rays or put a drain in her big wounds to try and help prevent so much infection,” she said. “My thought would have been to do an X-ray with the wounds being deep."
She said doctors told her to apply water to Bella’s wound when needed and to avoid using soap when doing so.
Barron said she tended to Bella and at times used soap to try and clean the wound. However, days after the exam, Barron said Bella’s wounds got worse. In graphic pictures, Barron showed how the wound became infected and how parts of Bella’s leg bone were visible from the outside. She later took Bella to All Creatures Animal Hospital after having doubts about Angels Vet Express.
“She had an infection down in her bone,” explained Barron. “They [All Creatures Animal Hospital] were worried that we were going to have to put her to sleep."
As the treatment continued, Barron learned the grave news about her dog.
“As they did further tests, they came to the conclusion that we could amputate her leg and that was the only way we could save her."
Signs of the surgery are still visible on Bella’s leg days after she received the surgery. After being full of energy and chasing things around the yard, Barron said Bella is much different after the amputation.
“She's just not herself,” said Barron, through tears. “She doesn't run and chase things like she used to. She would jump on me when she came home and she doesn't do that anymore.”
Barron said she may take legal action as a result of what she claims was a misdiagnosis. On Tuesday, Angels Vet Express founder Gary Silverglat responded to the claims and stood by the facility’s treatment of Bella.
“I read exactly what [Angels Vet Express] did,” he said. “She was told to come back. If she didn't feel it was right, she could've come back or said something was wrong and came back."
Silverglat said Angels Vet Express was never made aware of Bella’s infection, and it was up to Barron to notify them if there was a concern.
“It's her fault. It's her responsibility to bring it back,” Silverglat explained. “We did everything appropriately. The doctors gave her everything to cover for dog bites."
As Bella continued to heal on Tuesday from her wounds, Barron hoped a similar situation wouldn’t happen to another dog in the future.
“If this happens to prevent someone else from going through this, then that's what we want," Barron said.
Representatives for the Better Business Bureau and the Missouri Attorney General’s Office both report that no consumer complaints have ever been filed against Angels Vet Express.
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Tom Dempsey can be reached at Tom.Dempsey@KSHB.com.
