We had been customers of Gateway for over 5 years before this tragedy occured. On June 13, 2006 we took our 9 year old Chow for removal of foxtails and teeth cleaning. He was returned to us 3 days later unable to walk, swollen and listless. ""We forgot about him"" was the sorry excuse Dr. Jimerson and Dr. Villicana gave us. They never said sorry for leaving our dog outside in 100 degree weather. They reassured us that they felt that our dog would be alright. The following three weeks were hell. He was bedridden so he pooed and peed on himself so we had to clean him and his bedding three times at everyday and we had to flip him side to side so he could be comfortable. He never walked again. We tried to keep him alive while it seemed he had a chance and he seemed to improve when the swelling went down, but in the following 2 weeks the burns came to the surface and his hind legs liquified-I could see down to the bone! His internal organs were recovering, but his immune system turned on itself destroying red cells that it was producing to fight off infection faster than they could be produced. He died of sepsis 3 weeks later. A biopsy confirmed 2nd and 3rd degree burns. It is angering to think that Dr. Jimerson and Dr. Villicana would lie to us and play down what happened. They gave him steroids without ever clearly telling us what happened and kept him for ""observation"" while he should of been elsewhere receiving emergency care and plasma for heatstroke. His immune system had been compromised not only by the heatstroke but by the steroids that Gateway administered. To put the cherry on top, when my wife went for copies of the records, there was absolutely no record of what occured and Dr. Jimerson got defensive when asked why the medical records did not reflect exactly what happened. Yes, we sued them, yes our costs will be reimbursed, but no apologies, no explanations, no sympathy were ever expressed. I ask you, would you trust Gateway with your baby?
Pros: affordable
Cons: they are negligent and unprofessional
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