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Veterinary Malpractice Case Study

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QUESTIONS PRESENTED I. Whether a veterinarian has committed veterinary malpractice, under Texas law, when he administers a brand of vaccine to a mare after precautions of negative reactions, and such vaccine causes the mare convulsions. II. Whether it is possible to recover emotional damages against a veterinarian for veterinary malpractice, under Texas law, when a horse owner suffers emotional stress after witnessing her horse have a serious reaction to a vaccine. BRIEF ANSWERS I. Probably yes. Under Texas law, Ms. Perez will likely be able to establish all of the elements of a veterinary malpractice claim because Dr. Hou had a duty to conform to a certain standard of care and his deviation from the standard of care caused a reasonably close …show more content…

Perez needed to consider what spring shots to give her mare, Clementine. Her previous veterinarian had retired, selling his practice to Dr. Hou. Ms. Perez was particularly apprehensive with the West Nile vaccine, because Clementine had experienced severe reactions to both brands currently on the market. The first vaccine caused the mare to colic and the second vaccine caused neurological symptoms. After the mare’s reaction to the second vaccine, the mare’s previous veterinarian administered medications to counteract the reaction. He recorded the mare’s reactions and treatments to both of the vaccines in his records, which remained at the clinic when he sold his practice to Dr. Hou. He suggested taking preventative measures to minimize any allergic reactions. He informed Ms. Perez about a third vaccine that was in development, in which he was optimistic about because it seemed to produce far fewer reactions. Once Dr. Hou took over the veterinary practice, Ms. Perez called Dr. Hou’s office to set up an appointment. After futile attempts to speak with the veterinarian, Dr. Hou’s receptionist agreed to pass on Ms. Perez’s message to Dr. Hou, requesting that he bring the newly developed vaccine. Several weeks later, Dr. Hou arrived at Ms. Perez’s barn for a consultation. After frequent requests to pull Clementine’s patient records, Dr. Hou finally agreed and promised to call Ms. Perez with preventative steps. He also agreed to order the new

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