Shropshire vet suspended after lying to owner over dog's death
A vet has been suspended for 10 weeks after lying to a dog owner about her pet still being alive.
Dermot John Costelloe, of Tern Veterinary Group in Market Drayton, admitted to being dishonest with a client and falsifying records about the treatment of her dog.
It follows a disciplinary hearing held by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, which recognised it was an isolated incident and described Mr Costelloe as a good surgeon.
He admitted to four charges in relation to a border terrier/collie cross named Scruffy, which was admitted to the practice on October 30, 2014 and belonged to Merle Green.
Speaking after the hearing, Mr Costelloe said: "I made a one-off misjudgement in an emotional crisis in the practice.
"I acted unprofessionally at that time and apologise profusely to Ms Green for this. I fully accept the sanction imposed. I deeply regret my actions in this sorry affair."
A report released following the hearing said that he lied because he was concerned about the reputation of the practice, Ms Green's reaction to the death of her dog and concerns for a junior vet who was on duty the night that Scruffy died. The pet was being treated for a painful condition of the spine known as spondylosis.
The hearing heard that on October 31, Mr Costelloe told Ms Green Scruffy was still alive and the practice had taken positive steps to care for her dog throughout the previous night – despite knowing this was false. His other charges include dishonestly creating a hospitalisation record for the dog, which included records of observations and/or care that he knew had not been made or given, and providing this false hospitalisation record to Ms Green.
A report into the committee's findings described it as "sustained piece of deception" which continued, as far as Ms Green was concerned, from October 31 2014 until January 2015.
Chitra Karve, who chaired the committee, said the inquiry had found no "attitude of dishonesty".
