BluePearl Veterinary Partners review: Veterinary service - negligent ultrasound administration

In September 2023, we rushed our cat to BluePearl Pet Hospital in Waltham, MA, where she was administered an ultrasound. Our regular veterinarian examined her at 8 am that morning suspecting that she suffered from pancreatitis. He recommended that we go to another emergency pet hospital, but they were unable to accommodate us that day or even the next.

We waited 3 hours for this ultrasound procedure, as our cat was in desperate need of this diagnostic measure. During the wait, she walked around the room and we observed no unusual tail activity.

When we collected our cat after the procedure, she was in the carrier as she was when we gave her to a technician. We had no opportunity to see our cat physically stand or move until we returned home late that day. Nor were we given any pre- or post-treatment guidance or explanation regarding what to expect. For example, we were never advised that she would be shaved.

When we got home and let her out of the carrier, we noticed that her tail was dragging on the floor and that she could not raise it or "flick" it as she normally would.

We were not advised by a technician or anyone else at BluePearl that our cat’s tail was not typical or unusual in any manner either before or after the procedure. Neither we nor our regular vet observed any unusual behavior regarding her tail previously.

We called Blue Pearl to report that we were concerned about her tail dragging and the apparent immobility of her tail. We don't know for sure who was in the room conducting the procedure, and BluePearl has not made it clear who was in the room during the procedure and who handled her. Apparently, this is something that they want to hide.

We were forced to visit our vet and incur the costs of visits and x-rays. Our vet's review of the radiologist's report and his own examination is that there is damage to the nerves in her tail.

We have come to the only conclusion that is rational and logical. Sometime during preparation for the ultrasound or during the procedure, someone roughly pulled or mishandled her tail - notwithstanding that BluePearl claims nothing untoward happened. The resultant damage was not a result of anything that we or that our vet did. Our vet can’t say with any certainty whether our cat will ever recover from the damage, which we know was done to her tail by BluePearl.

We were forced to pay for additional services because of BluePearl’s negligence. Apparently, this is not an uncommon occurrence for this horrible company – they severely injured the two hind legs of a dog in Virginia this year during an MRI for which they were sued and held financially accountable.