Abbey Vets 'faulty heat mat' dog burned, said woman

Sarah Letton from Monmouthshire claimed she took her small chihuahua dog, Mia, to Abbey Veterinary Centre in Abergavenny on January 3, 2024. for emergency surgery following a womb infection. After bringing Mia home, she discovered a scab on Mia's back a few days later and said this may have been due to a "faulty heat mat".

Ms Letton, 49, said: "The nurse at Abbey Vets said it was either a hormonal infection or a burn.

Micha 'Mia' Letton (Image: Sarah Letton)

"I took her [Mia] to a separate vet, who confirmed it's absolutely a burn and not an infection."

Mia's owner claimed she was charged over £1000 for the emergency surgery, then another £137 to take Mia back for an appointment at the same practice, who she claimed diagnosed the scab as "a burn" and prescribed antibiotics.

Mia in January when Ms Letton first noticed the wound. (Image: Sarah Letton)

Ms Letton said: "The last part of her scab fell off in end of May so it took her four months to heal and willl remain forever bald.

"They wanted to then charge me to take her back."

Ms Letton claimed this was Mia's skin which fell off in February (Image: Sarah Letton)

According to Mia's medical records (sent by Ms Letton to The Argus), Ms Letton asked Abbey Vets what the scab was on Mia's back and was told "I cannot give definitive Dx but at this point i would suspect hormonal pyoderma, or possibly a burn possibly could have been from our heat mat, a few weeks ago now however. O understands."

Mia's back on March 2nd, according to Ms Letton (Image: Sarah Letton)

A spokesperson for Abbey Veterinary Centre on Hereford Road, said: "Due to client confidentiality, we cannot comment on individual cases.

"Abbey Vets takes any client complaints extremely seriously, and our team cares very deeply about providing the best possible care for our patients.

"For patient safety, it is important to maintain body temperature during general anaesthetic and surgery and heat pads are routinely used in veterinary practices.

Mia's back on June 10, according to Ms Letton (Image: Sarah Letton)

"Given pet safety is our top priority, we have reviewed all our processes following this case.

"While we found no evidence of a fault in any of our heat pads, we have added some enhanced measures to ensure our patients are protected."

When pressed about what "added some enhanced measures" refers to, Abbey Veterinary Centre declined to comment.

Medical record for Micha 'Mia' Letton on January 25, 2024. (Image: Sarah Letton)

Ms Letton claimed, "Abbey Vet still have not apologised for Mia's serious burn injury and say there were no faulty heat mats."

Ms Letton then said the vets advised her to speak to the insurance company.

She said: "They offered me a refund of £137 for the second appointment and cited "duck munchies" while Mia was with them, Mia hadn't eaten this, or anything else according to the medical records, even though they were charging me for food".