Veterinary incompetence, negligence, and abuse are alive and well in the United States and all over the world. Every day, untold numbers of defenseless animals are left in the hands of some negligent, incompetent doctors who inflict cruelty, injury, and death on our pets -- and get away with it.   

Millions of people take their pets to vets every year. Although skilled, competent veterinary care certainly outweighs the incidences of negligence and abuse, the damage that those veterinarians do is incalculable in terms of animal suffering, public health and safety, consumer fraud, and the emotional devastation caused by knowing that our beloved pets were harmed or destroyed by the very person entrusted with their care.    

If you believe that no veterinarian anywhere would ever deliberately harm an animal...never abuse client or public trust...never abuse their positions as doctors...or would never violate the laws of their profession...you will learn that public record, disciplinary actions by vet boards, and increasing media coverage on this ugly and disturbing subject say otherwise.

And if you think that it can't happen to you and your pet...think again.  

--Julie Catalano, 2000

I stand by all original material on this site. It is protected under the freedom of speech, the First Amendment, and the greatest protection of all -- the TRUTH. 

  This site is an independent consumer advocacy site and is not connected with any state licensing board or government agency in any way.

To go to main page of vetabusenetwork.com, enter site below

First time visitors, please read Disclaimers and Guidelines and Mission Statement

Visit Suki's Safe Haven, the new blog of the Veterinary Abuse Network, established March 27, 2012

"Why File a Complaint or Report Your Veterinarian? Five Reasons"

"The Secret Truth about Abusive Veterinarians"

Do you need to file a complaint against a veterinarian? 

Check out the new updated list of United States veterinary boards here.

Check out this site: Mulan's Horror Story - Vet William Schultz, DVM, Okemos Michigan leaves gauze inside dog

Here's one for the books--if the books are about arrogant, bully vets threatening their own victims with a defamation lawsuit for telling the truth and providing evidence of what the vet did to their pet.. Dr. William Schultz, DVM, of Schultz Veterinary Clinic in Okemos, Michigan, left a piece of gauze inside of Mulan, an Alaskan Malamute, leading to months of pain, a life-threatening infection, and a huge growth of tissue around the gauze that Schultz left behind. Check out Cindy O'Malley's Pet Malpractice site.

WARNING! GRAPHIC PHOTOS. 

The owner also told her story on RipOff Report here

Do You Know What Drugs Your Vet Is Prescribing?

Read Mattie's Story: Pet Owners Want Informed Consent of Drug Risks

by Kelly Kaczala

April 26, 2013

Fourteen years.

*

Fourteen years ago today, my life changed forever. I always say that in some ways, my life ended -- at  least life as I knew it.  In talking with so many victims of veterinary neglect, incompetence, malpractice, and abuse, that is the one common denominator, almost to a person, that all of them say:  My life will never be the same.  

April 26, 2013--On the 14th anniversary of Suki's death, I look back and look forward as I do every year on this date. I think of the events leading up to her horrendous death, and wonder yet again, How did this happen? It happened because I trusted a vet that I  should have NEVER trusted. It happened because I learned things from second opinion vets too late to help Suki.  And most of all, it happened because we had the terrible misfortune to land in the hands of a  monster -- a "doctor"  who had absolutely NO respect for Suki's life or for my life as her SOLE guardian. This monster, Dr. Edward J. Nichols, Crestway Animal Clinic, San Antonio, performed unauthorized surgery under dangerous anesthesia on her without my knowledge or consent, did not administer IV fluids to a dying, dehydrated body, could not even be bothered to keep accurate or complete records on her,  and then -- in acts of almost incomprehensible cowardice and arrogance,  not only blamed me for what happened and dodged ALL accountability at the state board level,  but also came after me with lawyers to try to silence me from telling what he had done to my cat. 

My cat. Not his. Mine.

Abuse doesn't happen in a vacuum, and freaks like Ed Nichols aren't alone. 

Over the past 14 years, I have heard literally hundreds of horror stories from victims all over the world. Vets who think nothing of shifting blame, twisting facts, timelines, and patient records,  escaping accountability by their state vet boards, and blustering,  blathering, and whining about how everyone else -- including competent vets who may have tried to fix the hideous damage they did to an innocent animal --  is either crazy, lying, stupid, or wrong.   

The sad fact is that nothing can stop these monsters except an increasingly savvy public who stops handing over their trust and their pets to them. That day can't come soon enough for me. As it stands now, there is often no place to go after the ultimate betrayal of trust. Victims are routinely dismissed by the vets themselves in ways ranging from cowardly to contemptible,  ignored by veterinary boards, hamstrung by a  legal system where pets are nothing more than property,  and ridiculed by the vet's "fans"  who care more about their vet "friend" than they do public health and safety.   

There are bright spots, however, and that's what victims must stay focused on if we are to overcome the cruelty, callousness, apathy and arrogance of some individuals in the veterinary profession and at  the state veterinary boards.  In Texas, for example, fellow advocates have made significant strides in reporting the shenanigans at the state board level,  or posting  public disciplinary records online when the Texas board decided arbitrarily to remove vital information that the public has the right to know.  Where I was alone in Texas 13 years ago, there are now other advocates speaking up and speaking out about the shameful inadequacies in the system, and helping to change it no matter how hard  the vets, the TVMA, and the board fight to keep the status quo. 

The process may still be heavily tipped in favor of the vets -- behind-the-scenes tactics make sure that vets' political and professional agendas often take precedence over consumer rights --  but much less so than when Suki's case was dismissed in a travesty of epic proportions in 2000, when the sole reviewing vet ignored every single piece of evidence of numerous violations of the standard of care. That same evidence was reviewed by my experts when the vet came after me five years later with lawyers trying to get an injunction against me. That scenario, as it turns out, was  not a fluke either: complaints by Texas vet victims are dismissed at a rate of up to more than 90 percent no matter how much evidence and expert opinion exists. Worse, some vets are suing their own victims in an attempt to silence them with unconstitutional injunctions, punish them for filing complaints, or telling their experiences. Some vets think nothing of using their considerable resources to bully their way through the legal system.

Veterinary boards and their abuse of political and economic power and privilege have always been a focus of this site.  The public has the right to know when systems fail so miserably, are so broken and so flawed, that they demand to be fixed to save our pets' lives -- literally. They have the right to know exactly when, where, and how these systems are not protecting our pets. 

I couldn't protect Suki. The nearly-20 years I had spent previously shielding her from every harm, making every decision with her in mind,  getting her EVERY medical treatment she ever needed or was ever recommended by ANY vet ANYwhere -- it all meant nothing when I blindly handed my trust and my Suki over to a vile individual whom I wouldn't have let within 100 miles of her had I known what he really was. That's why I do what I do -- what so many vet victims do -- to help prevent this type of unnecessary tragedy from happening to others at the hands of arrogant and incompetent vets who think their heinous deeds will somehow go unnoticed if they're just "nice" enough and manipulative enough to fool the public. 

Many, many thanks to those who have written such beautiful letters of support. Most of all, I thank Suki  for being the strongest and most amazing companion a human could ever have.  I miss her every day of my life. If you had known her, then you would know why I will never stop fighting, why I will never forget, and why I will never be silenced. As I have said from the beginning: 

I stand by all original material on this site. It is protected under the freedom of speech, the First Amendment, and the greatest protection of all -- the TRUTH. 

--Julie  Catalano

From Suki's Story:

"Here is what I get to live with for the rest of my life: Edward J. Nichols, DVM, putting Suki into an induction box where she had to inhale halothane and nitrous oxide while I knew nothing about it. Ed Nichols extracting a tooth without my permission or even having the simple human decency to inform me of anything he was doing to her. Ed Nichols not giving Suki IV fluids after recording “v. dehydrated” on her chart. The unbearable and eternal agony of now knowing Suki lay dying, dehydrated in a cage, at Crestway Animal Clinic, while I had no idea at the time. And these horrifying events are only the tip of the iceberg.

Don’t ever lull yourself into thinking that this can’t happen to you. I would have said the same thing before I was forced to live through this nightmare. 

My only hope is that Suki’s Story helps somebody reading these words.  If only one pet guardian learns something from what happened here, if only one animal is helped by any of this, if only one veterinarian makes the ethical choice to treat our companions as the family members that they are, then my brave and beautiful Suki did not die in vain."  

- From Suki's Story

"The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men." - Leonardo da Vinci

A letter to Suki

 August 5, 1979 - April 26, 1999

Do you need to file a complaint against a veterinarian?

 Start Here

Texas Residents:

 Do you know your veterinarian's disciplinary record? CHECK HERE at texasveterinaryrecords.com, a consumer protection site by Greg Munson

Disciplinary actions are public record; complaints and investigations are not. The absence of a vet's name on these records does NOT mean there were no complaints filed; a vet could have 50 complaints against him or her, but if they were dismissed, the public is not given that information by the Texas board agency. Other states make that public - why can't Texas?

This is why it's important to GO PUBLIC with the filing of complaints. By informing others that you have filed a complaint against a vet, you may be helping to save lives.

 January 2009 - LAWSUIT FINALLY OVER

ED NICHOLS' CASE AGAINST ME WAS DISMISSED WITH FINALITY ON MARCH 10, 2008.

The QUACK Dr. Edward J. Nichols, Crestway Animal Clinic, and his lawyer Ann Comerio FAILED in their attempts to dismantle this web site or get any type of injunction against me.

Nichols was after one thing: My First Amendment freedoms. And he apparently paid a buttload of money to...FAIL. 

In the end Edward J. Nichols of Crestway Animal Clinic San Antonio showed his true color -- YELLOW.

CHRONOLOGY:

July 21, 2005 - Edward J. Nichols, DVM, and dba Crestway Animal Clinic, San Antonio, Texas, served me with a lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction to dismantle vetabusenetwork.com and enjoin me from publishing his name, the name of his clinic, my experience with Crestway Animal Clinic, and his treatment of Suki. 

July 28, 2005 - Nichols FAILED to get an injunction against me or this site (see judge's order denying injunction here) 

December 2005 - Nichols files an appeal with the 4th Court of Appeals.

September 13, 2006 - Nichols FAILED AGAIN on appeal (see 4th Court of Appeals decision here) 

Judgment entered against Nichols and Crestway Animal Clinic

July 28, 2005 - March 9, 2008 - The period of two and a half years of brutal and invasive litigation by Nichols and his henchmen, with the case finally set for trial on March 10, 2008. 

March 9, 2008 - The night before trial, Nichols' lawyer calls my attorney and wants to talk settlement. 

March 10, 2008 - I signed the settlement agreement, and the settlement announcement was made in Bexar County District Court and Nichols' lawsuit against me was DISMISSED by the judge. Neither Ed Nichols nor his lawyer Ann Comerio appeared in open court for these proceedings. As my attorney said on the way out of court that day: "You were right, Julie. He's a coward." 

Late January, 2009 - Ten months after the dismissal of Nichols' case, we finally receive a signed copy of the settlement agreement with Nichols' signature on it. 

So what happened here?

Simple. It was typical Nichols using his wealth, his toxic arrogance, and his well-paid lawyer to drag me and my family through the most hideous SLAPP suit imaginable, and then when it came time for the COWARD to plant his sorry butt on a witness stand to back up his accusations against me, HE RAN.

That's the very nature of SLAPP suits - to use wealth and lawyers to scare, intimidate, and ultimately destroy defendants acting in the interest of public health and safety by exposing wrongdoing by licensees of the state or others in positions of public trust. They are not about the truth or even making it to trial -- they are about bullying. 

My web site stands, protected by First Amendment and the TRUTH. I will shout Suki's Story from the rooftops forever and beyond, and I will spread Ed Nichols and Crestway Animal Clinic's name to the depths of hell and beyond -- which is where they belong. 

And should Edward J. Nichols, this miserable excuse for a "doctor," the stupidest and most arrogant son of a bitch to ever slime the earth, be dumb enough to come after me again, I will fight even longer and louder to protect my First Amendment rights, and the rights of anybody subjected to a legal assault by bully vets like him. 

 I will NEVER forget. And I will NEVER be silenced. 

 - Julie Catalano

Founder, vetabusenetwork.com

What are SLAPP lawsuits?

SLAPP is an acronym for "strategic lawsuit against public participation," a category of lawsuit designed not necessarily to win in court but to harass an individual, a group, or a publication that is raising issues of public concern. 

Check out:

SLAPPing Back for Democracy, an Interview with George Pring 

VAN's First Amendment Section

If you know of any other lawsuits being filed by veterinarians against citizens, send information to speakout@vetabusenetwork.com 

My friend and fellow citizen advocate Greg Munson sent me the following, for those  fighting the good fight for justice and against corrupt systems that protect the wealthy and powerful.  -- Each time a person stands for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he or she sends forth a tiny ripple of hope. And crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance. Few are willing to embrace the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential vital quality for those who seek to change a world that yields most painfully to change. --Robert F. Kennedy

Media Coverage on vetabusenetwork.com in Texas

Watch the KSAT-12 Trailer Here

KSAT-12 in San Antonio Asks "Who's Vetting Your Vet?" 

"Vets are getting away with murder, basically..." Greg Munson. advocate, Mesquite, TX

San Antonio--ABC affiliate KSAT-12 aired an investigative piece on Tuesday, November 18, entitled "Vetting Your Vet." Reported by April Molina, the Defenders segment focused on pet owners trying to make changes at the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners. Advocates Greg Munson (www.stempy.net) and Julie Catalano, founder of vetabusenetwork.com were interviewed, along with Dewey Helmcamp, executive director of the state board.

More media coverage

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Major Legal Victory in Washington State!

Do you suspect your pet died as a result of an unauthorized procedure by a vet? You might be interested in a big legal win that took place in Washington State. Read A Major Victory for Animal Guardians posted at the Animal Legal Defense Fund site. 

WE WILL NEVER FORGET... WE WILL NEVER BE SILENCED....WE WILL NEVER FORGET... WE WILL NEVER BE SILENCED....WE WILL NEVER FORGET... WE WILL NEVER BE SILENCED...

Do you need to file a complaint against a veterinarian?  

START HERE

A Work in Progress - The Veterinary Abuse Network States Project

State-by-state breakdown of vet board info, vets in the news, and media coverage on veterinary malpractice, incompetence, neglect and abuse.

Do you want to contribute links to what's happening in your state? Contact me here. 

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