TORONTO – A Toronto woman says her dog was perfectly healthy when she brought it to a veterinarian for routine medical care in early June.
But less than an hour after showing up at the Scarborough clinic, she says she was shocked to see the dog’s eyeball had popped out of its socket.
“I wanted to die, I started to cry,” said Ekatrini Poulopoulos when she saw Mela, a three-year-old female Shih Tzu, in distress.
Poulopoulos says she went to the Lawrence-Brimley Animal Clinic because it offered walk-in services with no need for an appointment.
She paid the clinic about $33, including taxes, for a routine heartworm test.
But 45 minutes after entering the clinic, a portion of that time out of Mela’s sight because the dog was in a treatment room, Poulopoulos says she got a shock.
The dog returned with staff members who revealed Mela with an eyeball hanging from its socket, a condition known as Proptosis.
The condition is not unusual among animals that characteristically have bulging eyes, according to veterinary advice columns.
Mela’s owner says the dog was normal and in good health when she was taken to the clinic, a view supported by her husband, Jimmy, and a friend who saw Mela the same morning.
“100 per cent — she was fine,” said Georgia Zafirios.
But Poulopoulos says the clinic tried to suggest the dog might have come in to the clinic exhibiting the condition, a suggestion its owner says was not the case.
When Global News contacted the Brimley-Lawrence Animal Clinic, owned by Dr. Inderpal Kahlon, a manager denied the office was responsible in any way.
“Like I said: it’s their word against us, we noticed it — that’s all we did,” said Kaushi Aluwiare.
“These things can happen easily — we don’t know when it happened,” she said.
When subsequently asked for an interview, the clinic referred questions to lawyers in Toronto and Vancouver.
The clinic denies any wrongdoing.
“Our client denies any such allegation and the clinic’s video tape evidence of the dog’s visit confirms this,” said lawyer Christina Bowman. “She did not produce any video to support the assertion.”
Sumandeep Singh, another lawyer representing the veterinary clinic, said allegations against the clinic are false.
Singh demanded Global News pay his client “$20,000 within 10 days” in compensation for what he called “abhorrent conduct” for looking into the story. Global News did not agree to any payment.
In the meantime, Poulopoulos says she wants an explanation for what happened and compensation for the $1,100 in surgical and treatment costs she paid at another animal emergency hospital to treat Mela.
She is hoping the surgery restores Mela’s vision but says she has been given no guarantees.
“I had Mela for three years; we’re in love with her. She’s part of my family.”
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