Veterinary Village

October 21st, 2019, Cookie was seen by Dr. Kowaleski for a pre breeding exam. Progesterone testing was also completed using the Catalyst giving a result of 9.6 ng/ml. During the pre breeding exam Dr. Kowalski performed a vaginal exam after which she said that Cookies *** was very restricted. She said It was unlikely that they would be available to successfully perform a TCI and that Cookie would not be able to be bred naturally due to the severe restriction.

Dr. Kowaleski highly recommended scheduling a surgical insemination and c-section rather than continuing with the TCI because that approach for this breeding and delivering would best ensure Cookies safety. I was informed that it would cost $1000 to $1500 for the surgical insemination.

After contacting a few local veterinarian offices, I learned the average surgical insemination cost locally was somewhere between $350-500, half the quoted cost I was given by Veterinary Village. I decided it was best to continue with a TCI, so I scheduled a TCI appointment at Veterinary Village with Dr. Greer.

On October 23rd, 2019, Cookie was seen for her scheduled TCI which was scheduled with Dr. Green two days prior. After being taken back to the exam room I was told that Dr. Ahmann would be doing the procedure. I had not been informed of this at the time of scheduling, prior to my arrival, or even upon checking in for the appointment. I asked why this had not been disclosed to me, at which point Dr. Greer came into the exam room and explained that she was too busy to do the procedure so Dr. Ahmann would be doing the TCI. She assured me that Dr. Ahmann was just as capable as her and that she trusted her to perform the procedure. This was deception because the staff at Veterinary Village was informed by me that I would not have the TCI done by anyone other than Dr. Greer when I scheduled the appointment. Despite having been fully informed of my wishes, they scheduled the TCI with Dr. Ahmann but told me it was with Dr. Greer.

Also on October 23rd, 2019, progesterone testing was completed for Cookie using the TOSOH giving a result of 8.8 ng/ml. The same blood sample was then also tested using the Catalyst with a result of 18.1 ng/ml. During the appointment the first progesterone result from the TOSOH was not disclosed to me, only the result from the Catalyst. Furthermore, 2 days prior to the 8.8 ng/ml result Cookies progesterone was a 9.6 ng/ml, a decline not a rise in progesterone. You need to see a consistent rise in progesterone before breeding. Data collected from multiple properly timed progesterone tests is how you determine an accurate time of ovulation. Once you know that, you can then determine the optimal time for breeding (Brian E. Greenfield, D.V.M. http://www.gundogsonline.com/Article/Dog-Progesterone-Test-Page1.htm). Had I known of the huge discrepancy in the test results, I would have requested a 3rd test to get a more accurate result and depending on those results, I may not have continued on with the procedure if it could not be accurately determined what Cookies progesterone levels really were.

In this situation, the non disclosure of 1 of the 3 performed progesterone test results was deception. The veterinarians at Vet Village not properly collecting enough data to determine the right time to breed, was negligence.