Pop-Up spay surgery nightmare: Dog nearly dies, owner warns others
HOUSTON - All responsible pet owners need to spay and neuter their dogs and cats. But like any other surgeries, things can go horribly wrong.
Last month, someone dumped a sweet pup now named Laney.
"She just looked so sweet, and I just thought if I didn't help her what was going to happen to her?" said Laney's owner Amanda Mares.
Earlier this month, Amanda decided Laney needed to be fixed.
"It was going to cost about $750 to spay her through my regular vet," Amanda said. "And it ended up costing over $10,000 and almost her life."
Amanda says she took Laney to a mobile pop-up clinic to get the surgery for $150.
She says the day of the surgery Laney was fine.
"100% totally healthy. Happy, jumping around, playing," said Amanda.
The next day, Amanda says Laney was having problems standing.
The following morning, she says Laney was near death.
"She could barely sit up at that point," Amanda said. "We knew something was really wrong."
Laney was rushed to Vergi 24/7 Animal Emergency Hospital.
Amanda says she was told the spay surgery was the cause of Laney's grave condition.
"The sutures that were internal had not been tied off correctly," she said. "So she was bleeding internally. She had two pints of her own blood in her stomach, and she had a blood clot the size of a softball."
Laney's urine turned green.
"The chief of staff at Vergi had only seen one other dog, one time in his career, with green urine," Amanda said. "And nobody knew why."
In an email to Amanda, the vet who performed the spay surgery, told her she contacted her insurance company and an investigation is now underway.
The surgery, blood transfusion, and 5-day hospital stay costed more than $10,000.
Laney's still limping, but her story has a happy ending.
"I just really love her, and I just want the best for her," said Amanda. "I don't understand how someone could have just thrown her away."
Amanda advises other pet owners to research pop-up clinics, and consider using brick and mortar low-cost spay and neuter clinics.
If the insurance company pays for the vet bills, Amanda says she will give money back to those who donated to her.