The Department of Public Health

I received a letter from Gary Griffin (12,30,20110) who is an Investigations Supervisor/Office of the Practitioner Licensing and Certification Department of the Connecticut Department of Health stating "that the department found no probable cause" and for that reason Dr Melvin Pond DVM goes free. In spite of the fact that our documentation was sent to the DPH legal department because 2 consulting vets found that Melvin Pond dropped the ball and a cascading set of events occurred which cost my dogs leg, much pain and suffering and my entire savings. Doctor Melvin Pond was also brought to court by another vet in Connecticut's. I will never let this go. He hurt my dog and threw us under the bus. I will post the You tube video's of Mr Beebs trying to stand after his back leg was amputated. It should have never happened to that wonderful therapy dog and member of my family. When I paid for veterinary services I never expected it to turn into a nightmare of tears and grief. As an animal lover who paid over $3,000 for Dr Pond to help my dog and ironnically I ended up with a man who cut and ran and blustered his way out of our uncomfortable situation. I was left holding the bag and my photo's and blog journal show the pain we endured because he dropped the ball. Shame on the CT department of Health and a heads up...we won't be silent any longer...these animals are part of of our families.

too late for a court date

Well I finally got an attorney willing to go after Dr. Pond and found out that too much time had elapsed. I also found out from a woman I met in Washington DC that the Connecticut Board that disciplines veterinarians rarely punishes bad doctors. In other words I can expect the CT Board of health to also let Mr Beebs and myself down. To add insult to injury the Ct attorney general works for the board in a law suit and against the public thats been harmed.I'm graduating this December and will spend the rest of my life making this right. In 2 years I plan to run for state legislator and get behind some animal legislation that will end this madness. Its as though citizens with pets are second class citizens without the right to due process or a fair hearing. Dr. Pond devastated our lives and walked away. He gave us the wrong antibiotics and that bad call, set a ball in motion that would end in amputation. No veterinarian should be allowed to get away with this. The heartache of watching and trying to help that beautiful dog was beyond what money could buy. Mr Beebs is with God and I'm at peace with that. I won't ever let this go as long as I have air in my lungs.

Statute of Limitations?

I hope to God that because Beebs surgery was in 2006 that I will have gone past the point of a law suit. Ironically I have tried to get an attorney on this case since 2006 and with no luck what so ever. I asked my cousin Nancy back in 2006. We met for lunch at Turks in West Haven for lunch and discussed the case. She was very interested and made it known that she would help bring about a law suit. She fell off the face of the earth a short time later when she had problems with one of her children. I called an old Friend Art Riccio and asked him. He told me there's no money in it and he wasn't interested, besides there were no laws on the books he could use to help me. I then contacted mal practice attorneys in new haven at long wharf who never returned my phone calls. I met another attorney who came to my house in 2007 and sat for 4 hours taking notes and eating lunch with me. A week later I had sent her numerous emails which she never responded to. This went on for a couple weeks and I was heart broken because I had felt hope for the first time regarding getting justice for my beebers. She just blew me off and we have never spoken since. i contacted the CT BAR and wrote back and forth to The "Animal Law" liaison who also wanted no part of our case. Recently another veterinarian brought suit against Pond and it was in the New haven register. I contacted him and he was the one who told me about attorney Otis in Manchester. I have spoken with him and sent him a huge stack of medical docs along with graphic horrible pictures. I will also send him bank invoices to show the massive cost in trying to fix Ponds botched surgery. I have no guarantee that Otis will bring suit either and wonder if he too will disappear into the night like all the others. I didn't run out of time I couldn't get ANYONE to help me in the legal profession! I will go to our States attorney general if I must. Please say a prayer that for once some legal mind with a heart will help us. I'm not asking for pro bono work and I never did. I can't even through money at people to take our case. Where are my rights? I pay taxes and lots of them...we are law abiding people and yet we can be screwed by a vet and everyone looks the other way. I'm already having a hell of a time trying to get a medical witness because the veterinarians all watch each others back. I will be forced to look outside of CT. All across the board I feel like a second class citizen in regards to my rights to pursue a law suit. One way or another I will make sure Dr Pond acknowledges what he did. Perhaps an article in the news paper would help. All those blood sucking attorneys who will become all compassionate when the laws change and they can make an easy buck. I am presently an intern at the State Legislature and perhaps i will be able to get someone in power to aid me on this matter. I have tried and tried and tried again to get legal representation since 2006 to no avail. How sad.... I won't give up because my beautiful dog Mr Beebs should have NEVER lost his leg and endured the pain and surgeries he did. I will take this to my grave if i must but I will never back off.

Time to go after Dr. Pond

Mr Beebs is gone and yet reviewing his medical records yesterday had me sobbing like the ordeal was yesterday. Its painful to look back at all the pain and suffering we both endured because one doctor dropped the ball. I am having that doctor investigated by the Connecticut Board of health at this time and will hopefully be able to file suit against the doctor. It is my job to do a timeline and collect the bills which go back to 2006 and are up in the $80,000. range. I am not wealthy but I had sold my house when the market was at its peak and I made a large profit which was spent on saving my dog. This mission is not about the money but it is about stopping that arrogant slip shod doctor who removed all normalcy from our lives. He went on and we were left with damage control. I'm glad I wrote this blog and took those pictures and I hope a jury does get to see what happens when doctors are too busy to do the right thing. I didn't get to walk away with a large check in my pocket. No I had to endure years of giving Beebs injections and hospitalizations and flushing oozing wounds. We had to put a stair climber on our back stairs so Mr Beebs could continue to live in the same part of the house as us. We had ramps and slings and wheelchairs all because of Dr. Pond. I remember a vet at Cheshire animal hospital once told me that the situation "was just bad luck". Really? When I get done with these slip shod docs it will be they who will experience "bad luck". This is outrageous in 2010 and I will continue my political science studies, intern at the State Legislature, pass the LSAT , go to law school and make it my life's mission to protect animals from vets like him. I won't let this go Dr. Pond not ever because one thing I am is tenacious and on this one I am sure I am on the side of the angels.

Mr Beebs son Sydney is very ill

I had just lost Beebs in July and a month later found out that Sydney had cancer and cardio myopathy. We have been on a tread mill of surgery and meds ever since and the questioin is what will end his life first. His heart or return of the thyroid carcinoma? I was so shocked by this news I started having my own chest pains. The cardiologist told me he has from 3-6 months to a year at the top end. I had so hoped to make up for all the time lost with a handicapped Mr Beebs and make it up to Sydney...

Last night I made a duck and he and my husband ate it.He gets liver, heart, beef, ice cream cones..afterall what I waiting for? He already has a heart condition and cancer floating around his body.We go for slow walks and he sets the pace.Rides in the car.I wish I didn't know what I know because everyday I look at him and wonder when is his heart going to stop. Its why I haven't written in so long...because I miss Mr Beebs so much and know Sydney will be joining him soon. I've revolved my life around those 2 boys and don't know what I'm going to do with myself when they are both gone.

Mr Beebs May 18 1997- July 19 2009

When I am able to grasp the enormity of this loss I will write the tribute my boy deserves.Until then I take every day moment by moment as every thing around here reminds me of the Beebers. I won't wash his bedding or toys...and poor Sydney is lost without him. He scans the horizon for his Dad as we walk in the park. Maybe if we are lucky he really does see him.I hope so and deep inside I know he's okay and there is peace in that place. In time

the pain will be replaced with the joy he created in our lives.This picture was taken on our last camping adventure one week before he passed away. My angel

The fun never stops on Pawson Rd

Mr Beebs will NOT use the new wheel chair in fact he bit at it which really upset me. The owner of the company actually came by and we tried a dozen different techniques and to no avail. The stump continually slides out and it must be painful for Beebs. At this point I figure I can carry him around the house and yard but my husband comes with me to the park and we both take an end of the towel and walk him at his pace while he sniffs. He seems to like the company and the assistance and is a happy clam as usual. I now have 2 $500. wheel chairs which i would be willing to loan to anyone who has a dog that would use them. Maybe I could put a flyer up at the animal hospitals around and perhaps someones dog will benefit. He is a willful dog and I get the feeling he feels trapped in the cart and is uncomfortable because of the stump/end of the bone being under pressure. I was in tears about this last week but realized I have done all I can do and that in the end he like myself will depart this world. I feel at peace now..I'm going to play it out until he gives me the "I'm ready" sign. As of now he eats like a horse and still gives off such a strong alpha male vibe that big and small dogs alike cower when he makes even a peep! The other day in the park a little Hungarian dog pounced on him and when he let out a rumble the dog rolled over on her back and licked his jowls! Even as a cripple he still has the authority thing all over em. Sydney had 6 teeth pulled and no I must brush his teeth every night...give them anti biotics, deramax, tramadol....Like I say the fun never stops around here and I am developing very powerful arms and shoulder muscles!

We cancelled our sailing trip up to Province town Mass. and instead rented a motor home so we could travel up to Maine and take the pups with us. I'm actually excited to go and have my babies with me to look after. It may be Mr Beebs last vacation with us so I'm going to make it a great one!

Pressure sore developing?

Well Mr Beebs can't be lifted 100% of the time and being the willful gladiator that he is, drags himself around on his stump. This is not good as it has worn away a bit of hair the size of a quarter and after researching bed sores and pressure wounds this soft spot could become infected very easily. Apparently bed sores are what killed Christopher Reed so they are not to be taken lightly. I've been blotting the spot with an antiseptic and neopsorene on a daily basis. The difficulty is the stairs all over our house which makes hie wheel chair dangerous to use. There are times I just feel like I'm throwing my heart against the wall. This battle has raged for 3 solid years and the surgeon responsible for this is being investigated by the Ct Board of Health. However the board or peers that reviews these cases must be on a volunteer basis so that it could never be said that they were "paid" to come to any particular conclusion. Mr Beebs and I have come along way together and when the time comes to say goodbye I believe a part of me will die with him and a part of him will inspire me for the rest of my life.

Mr Beebs is handicapped but has new wheels!

Well I always knew that amputating his back leg would put enormous strain on the existing leg over time. Well it has finally given out and he can no longer support himself on it anymore. He is truly crippled in that he can only "drag" himself from here to there and it is painful to watch. I've been thinking and praying about him it seems like forever and have wondered is it time to let him go. Sadly he is full of life and joy which makes a decision like that really difficult. He doesn't want to go anywhere and continues to eat and play with his toys and Sydney and I. What I did do is scrap the eddies Wheels i bought him because it was forcing his centered back leg into a forced position and Beebs would not take one step in it even as a crippled dog. So...I drove up to New Hampshire with my Dad and Beebs and went to Walkin Wheels which is a softer gentler version of a dog cart. Once he got in the cart he literally kept walking around and around the parking lot. I brought it home with us and we are in training because he needs to get moving again and I need to fine tune the fit so that it doesn't hurt his groin. The last 3 years have been one big steep learning curve and were still going! He is back in the park and grinning because he can move better than he has in several years I would imagine. he has run over my foot with his cart and of course rigging it means lifting his back end up and into the neoprene sling so that I can fasten it to the frame. he is 92 pounds so this has caused me to pinch several nerves in my shoulders which make my hands go numb from time to time. Other than that we are still pursuing our case against the Dr who started this incredible hardship with the CT Board of Health. That is a whole other banana which I have let take a back seat to making beebs and Sydney happy and healthy. Tim and I had planned a sailing adventure this summer but with Beebs new condition thought better of leaving him with someone other than us. So...we have rented a motor home and will take both dogs on vacation up to the down east coast of Maine and into Canada. It will be wonderful and I'll be able to take care of them and have fun at the same time. It all worked out and we can sail some other time. I feel confident that these new wheels will bring a quality of life to Mr Beebs which he certainly deserves and it will make our family more normal once again. The people at Walkin Wheels/Handicapped pets are warm, supportive and competent.The owner himself help to fit Beebs the day we were there. He kept saying "I just want the dog to be comfortable". I'd highly recommend their product as it is adjustable and well designed. Hats off to Walking Wheels! I'll be sure to take a photo I can post of The beebers in his new gig creating as always more attention and inspiration from everyone who meets him.

Breaking News!!!!

On the front page of Today's New Haven Register News Paper is an article about the upcoming law suit filed against Melvin Pond and Central Animal Hospital! Apparently their careless behavior killed another veterinarians dog who basically drowned to death and had a sponge left in its abdomen. I am more than willing to help this case as I have the Connecticut Board of Health investigating Dr pond as of DEC 2008. I am so happy to know that justice will be served and that these deeds will go punished as they should this is a banner day for me and the Beebs. I will try and contact the attorney representing the plaintiff in the case. Please go to the papers web sight and read the article...it was only a matter of time when this would happen.
These are the very same culprits in Mr Beebs demise and if they feel anywhere near the anguish , heart ache and pain we have felt in these last 3 years it would be a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned. I will cheer the day justice is served.

Not great lately

Poor old Beebs is having alot of trouble with his back end these days. he can hardly maneuver to poop or pee and is very unstable. i have taken him for acupuncture and chiro recently and hope it will help him. He is still very alert and eats and plays with his toys. Its very upsetting to see him struggle to move around. I was afraid that back leg would be brutalized after the amputation and I was unfortunately correct. That was why i had held off on the amputation for so long. If he can't stand himself at 90 pounds and will not use his wheel chair.....
I'm praying the treatments put life and energy back into his hind quarters I dread with all my heart what may come if I can't. He is still so happy and vibrant....he wants to live.

Back on Anti biotics

Oh well here we go again. Mr Beebs has had a difficult time walking once again and Sydney has taken to sniffing his penis which has always indicated something going on in that region.The vet says prostate infections can be chronic and given scar tissue in which to hide very difficult or impossible to kill. So back on cephalexin....a moderate to low dose enough to remove any pain he is experiencing from that infected gland.When Sydney stops drawing my attention to the area I will know its at bay. My dog Sydney with his awesome ability at sniffing out trouble is my best diagnostician! He has sniffed out numerous problems before and has been right on the money.
Besides all that I am busy reading legislative law books and animal advocacy research so I can get my game plan focused. I need to do this before school starts so that I devote the time I need to my studies and getting me that much closer to my political science diploma. I have a good feeling about 2009, in spite of the fact that my sister of 48 years is fighting off liver cancer at the moment. In many ways these tribulations have made me appreciate time and its rapid motion forward even more. We don't get it back so I want to treat every day with purpose. That's my new motto! Make it count Lori!

I feel change in the air...

I'm doing my homework for my beautiful dogs and everyone elses in Ct. No pet should have to be put down because there has been negligence, complications, or any other disaster that is no fault of the pet or its guardian I was just reading a case in CT in which these poor people had their vet work on an enormous hernia on their dog.The vet was not well versed in this procedure and the dog began swelling and the vet dismissed this as a natural occurance.The issue went on and on and the vet couldn't admit they were over their head basically.In the end after the owners begged to have the vet do something the dog went into shock and had to be put down.The vet had sliced into a vascular area and the dog literally internally bled to death. The CT AVMA suspended the vets license and the vet had to pay them $1000 in a fine. In the meantime the people who loved that dog payed all kinds of fee's to save their dog from this vets surgery and what they got is an I'm sorry. Tell their hearts that....
How can this be reasonable in this day and age? I was stunned reading the report and realized just what I am up against.'The cake and eat it too crowd."Not all vets by any stretch...because my personal vets saved my dog and I would do nothing to harm them or any other decent practitioner. However I can't help but see the injustice in taking the best care you can of your companion and yet the practitioner shares virtually no responsibility when they injure or bring about the death of your pet, leaving you and your family sobbing and asking why? No one sobs over the loss or damage to a table or chair ...maybe some do...but I suspect most see these beautiful creatures (our pets) as a blessing in our lives, no less than a family member. A being present in all our holiday photographs...after all we name them, we celebrate every new moment in our lives with them.Good or bad. How can it be that they share the same worth as a table or chair? Maybe for some...a very , very small percentage of people, but by and large the people I have come to know here at home and the nice people that continue to ask about Mr Beebs from states far and wide years after this disaster started. Ilove my dogs...and the law in 2009 does not reflect that reality.I am not alone .Todays animal law is a misplaced reality that must evolve if it is to measure who we trully are in 2009.
My dogs are not less...they are just different.

Todays the day!

After 2 and a half years of grief I will formally make a claim against the surgeon who caused this heartache for Mr Beebs and myself since 2006.I will file a formal complaint and notify the Director of grievances at the Ct medical association. I can't wait to nail this guy and the filthy hospital where this nightmare began. I'm ready now. I'm also going to start a web sight called "Companion or property, Guardian or owner".I need to recruit voters in Ct so that my bill for legislation will have backbone and bite. I'm excited and can't wait to protect animals and their people from abusive situations! Here's to a banner 2009 for all the animal lovers and thier friends.

Sydneys operation and the complications

Well Sydney went into surgery just 10 days ago and the tumor in his testicle was removed along with his testicles. The growth under his chin came back benign thank God. However several days after his neutering his scrotum sack began swelling and swelling to the point it looked as though his testicles had magically grown back by themselves. The area was warm and the sack became more expanded and very hard to the touch. I called the vet on Friday 4 days after the operation and was told its normal its post op bruising. I didn't feel this was correct but respect the doctors advice. Come Saturday I'm so worried how hot and hard this is getting I ask my husband to take Sydney to Central in New Haven. They tell him its normal sometimes it happens.In fact they kind of snickered at him like he was over reacting. Put cold compresses on it I am told.His entire groin area is hot and tight to the touch. He is acting lethargic and finding it difficult to walk. On Tuesday one week after the operation I am back at the doctors office after I notice puss coming out of his sutures. She looks at him and suggest more compresses and antibiotics to fight the pus in there. I am shocked that no one has suggested lancing the tissue and relieving the awful pressure building in there. On Tuesday the doctor who did the operation was back at the office and told me to meet him at Central right away he didn't like the idea of puss in the area. So I met him and his assistant at the hospital. Poor Sydney was in so much pain and discomfort now I was mentally tormented by it all. The vet gave him a fast acting narcotic that last 10 minutes before they wake back up. My job was pulling his tongue out and keeping his jaw open so he could breath while the vet lanced the scrotum and putrid sludge poured out of the poor dog. He used a tool like a screw driver and really pushed on the area almost like a liposuction procedure.Sydney's jaw was starting to clamp down and I was afraid he'd bite his own tongue off when he awoke or break my fingers. The vet quickly passed a rubber tube through the scrotum and stapled it in place/. He was then given morphine.The doctor put a mouth guard on Sydney because he could feel how powerful his jaws are and the poor guy was capable of biting the vet without intention.I kept blotting and coaxing the infection out .The doctor was shocked at the amount of infection and I could have wrung everyone of their necks. There was no need for this suffering...the skin all the way up towards his anus was hot and tight and full of fluid. So Sydney and Beebs are living in the basement right now until his wound stops dripping.I have tons of towels and blankets that I keep changing he is also on cephalexin again.the photo's are gruesome and the sound affects as the doctor manipulated the wound were horrible.I swear the dog could feel the lancing the way his voice changed.Anyway..he is acting better and more chipper at present. The big lesson or one of many...NOT having a temperature does NOT mean you don't have an infection. Also if the animals owner says over and over somethings wrong you can bet..they know better than anyone that something is wrong. We spend hours and days, weeks and years with these family members and I know when I see a change for the worse.I'm exhausted. Beebs is fine the old gladiator. I know the doctors meant well but they really screwed up on this one.

After the surgeries not good news..

Well me and my husband came back for the UK and were taking both dogs to surgery within days of our return. I am not sure what to think at this moment because my younger boxer Sydney had a tumor in his testicle which was making his nipples change shape which is how I recognised a problem. But what i didn't figure on was the strange bump about the size of a thumbnail that appeared under his chin. It was hard as a rock and did not move. It bleed all over my shirt one night when he leaned up and hug me. The vet said it was cancerous and so the sample was sent to a pathology lab. I hope to God it is not something rampaging through his entire body. I've spent so much time trying to save beebers my little guy has taken a back seat and I feel horrible with guilt. I assumed...a dangerous thing to do. That Sydney would be around years after Beebs had passed away. I never counted on a cancer diagnosis especially in such a young (9) gorgeous dog. Oh boy...I am so mad at myself. I'm now giving him the full treatment and Mr Beebs is getting pissed off and acting like a spoiled child ramming into poor Sydney. Too bad.For 2 and 1/2 years I've pulled out all the stops for the beebs and now his son may be very ill. I hope I don't have any tough decisions ahead of me...although denial suits me very well at this moment. My only sister was just told her cancer is back and its in her liver. I'm going to go kiss my dogs and go take a walk to the beach and try and draw some peace from nature.

Trials and Tribulations

Oh boy...it just seems like every holiday season one of the dogs develops a problem .Well this year both dogs have unexpectedly developed a problem which needs surgical attention asap. I just brought both dogs in for surgery this morning and feel bummed out.Mr Beebs has been acting and eating very strangely lately. It looked like his face was drooping and his mouth hung open.When he was eating it seemed like he was slinging food back into his throat and not chewing it at all. The vet said it was nausea related to the cephalexin...I pulled way back on that and the mouth remained hung and eating and drinking were sloppy and ineffective events. After 3 days of this I insisted he look again.Beebs lower jaw is without power whats so ever which means it could be a muscle disease.I mentioned how his left eye had been pussy of late and wondered what was happening.The vet looked in the eye lid and spotted a tumor which was causing the irritation. I had also brought Sydney in that day for moral support and in [passing asked the doctor why Sydneys nipples would be getting bigger and changing shape. He asked "Is he neutered" I said no. Well this must have happened suddenly because one of his testicles is the size of a grape the other a lemon.It has a tumor in it which is estrogen driven. Oh boy...the poor pups.So today If we are lucky Sydneys testicles will be cancer free and not metastasized and Mr Beebs tumor and jaw problem can also be overcome and corrected. I felt horrible leaving them there today and asked that they be put in the same dog run with blankets from home. I put on my Saint Frances medal which I do when I'm scared and pray for the boys. I heard on the radio today that saint frances can be credited for the creation of the manger scene which we see all over the world.My poor sister and brother in law just had to put down their 13 year old pup Duncan who was like my nephew and spent many good times with the boys and I. The same vet who is attending my guys today went to their home and ended his suffering in a place he knew and loved. This vet is a man I trust with all my heart.
Loving a dog is easy but letting them go is never.

I never realized the power of bacteria before

Here we are almost a year past the prostate infection , the amputation and all the other assorted medical issues. Once again I tried to take Mr Beebs off anti biotics and see if he would be okay.Well five days in and he was sleeping all the time, very lethargic and having a really hard time walking without falling down.I put him back on and literally within hours I saw improvement.The infection that is trapped somewhere (prostate) will not be killed.Last Thanksgiving he began bleeding out of his penis and that was the start of this new infection.For all I know its the same infection that took his leg that has colonized elsewhere. In reading my earth science book I have come to find out that bacteria are the creators of earths early atmosphere so it should not shock me to find that these formidable creatures have staying power. We could certainmly learn a few tricks from them So Beebs is back to anti biotics and adequan shots every 5-8 days which help alot.
The sad news is that Tyler our newest dog had to be put down last week.He had such severe leg problems that he could no longer stand, walk or get around.It was horrible to watch and we tried cortisone shots, $4,000. worth of MRI's and spinal taps all to no avail.The poor guy was helpless and now he is reunited with old Harvey his owner who passed away back in June. We keep fighting the good fight and the boys are still enjoying life so I'm happy to have them with me.I just turned 50 and I have so much to do yet I hope I can last alongtime and help animals the way I want to so badly.