A man says his dog died after getting an MRI at a Long Island vet, according to a complaint filed with the state.
“We just wish we had seen your article sooner,” Howard Schneider said of The Post’s coverage from two days before his dog died about another man’s pooch becoming paralyzed after receiving the same procedure at Long Island Veterinary Specialists.
Schneider claims that his healthy canine, Sydney, went to the same facility for an MRI to check a limp and hours later she died from cardiac arrest, according to his complaint filed with the State Education Department’s Office of Professional Discipline, which oversees misconduct cases against vets and other professions.
The 10-year-old Wheaten Terrier went into the Plainview, L.I. clinic on July 10 for the scan which required she be put under with anesthesia, according to Schneider and his complaint.
LIVS, “used unqualified and untrained people to perform the procedures related to the MRI and the botched attempt to help our dog after she went into supposed cardiac arrest,” his July 18 complaint alleges.
The Plainview man said in the complaint that the MRI was not conducted inside the clinic but rather “in a trailer in the parking lot of the facility.”
“We were also billed excessively, and the bill was put through by them even though they had killed our dog,” the OPD papers say.
In the complaint, Schneider sited The Post’s coverage of a lawsuit filed against LIVS by Harold Lehr, who claims his dog, Oscar, was paralyzed and eventually euthanized after the clinic allegedly crippled Oscar during an MRI for a limp.
“Unfortunately, we did not see that article before we trusted them [LIVS] to do a basic noninvasive procedure on our beloved Sydney,” the 66-year-old psychologist charged in the complaint. “Please help us and don’t let this happen to any others.”
“We brought a healthy dog in for a non-invasive diagnostic procedure and within hours she was killed and the circumstances raise a lot of questions,” Schneider told The Post.
Schneider and Lehr’s lawyer, Luis Trujillo, said he plans to file a lawsuit for Schneider.
“There is a pattern coming out of LIVS, from the facts the clients give me, and I believe in this case there was gross negligence.”
Assembly member Deborah Glick’s office confirmed in an email to Lehr that there is an ongoing NYSED investigation into LIVS but did not elaborate on the status of the case.
A spokesperson with NYSED said they can’t comment on cases but added, “We take all allegations of misconduct and neglect of duties against licensed professionals extremely seriously.”
The AG’s office confirmed they had received complaints against LIVS but said they couldn’t specify how many they received or say who filed them.
A lawyer for LIVS, Alexander Bateman Jr., said they hadn’t received a complaint from the OPD or AG’s office but would cooperate completely with any investigation.
Bateman said LIVS’ doctors, “always take the time necessary to explain options, benefits and risks to pet owners, so that they can make well informed decisions.”
“We know that when the facts are reviewed the conclusion will be that LIVS and its’ doctors provided the best care possible under the circumstances,” Bateman continued.
“Unfortunately, there are always risks attendant to certain testing and treatment, regardless of the level of care and attention,” the lawyer said. “It is always sad when an owner loses a pet. Everyone at LIVS does everything possible to prevent such outcomes.”