# Ooops...



## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

November 09, 2009, 6:47PM 


NORTH RIDGEVILLE, Ohio — A breeder from Columbus has sued a North Ridgeville animal clinic over a breeding mix-up that almost killed her champion show dog. 
Barbara Lea Jacobs charges that her purebred Pembroke Welsh corgi was 
inseminated with semen from both a corgi and from a Great Pyrenees, which is five times the size of a corgi, because the semen was negligently mixed by veterinarian Dr. Robert Hutchison and Animal Clinic Northview. 
"It was like breeding an elephant to a gazelle. She almost died. They destroyed the value of this bitch," said attorney David Jay Hyman, who is representing Jacobs and is also a breeder of show dogs. 
The suit, filed in Delaware County, was transferred to Lorain County Common Pleas Court last week on a motion by Hutchison's attorney Todd Haemmerle. Haemmerle said he could not comment on the case. Hutchison, who was also named individually in the suit, did not return phone calls. 

Hyman said the corgi, known as Gwynne, was inseminated in 2007 with semen from a 30-pound corgi that was contaminated with semen from a 150-pound Great Pyrenees. Gwynne conceived a litter that included two purebred corgis, six "abnormally large" Pyr-Corgi puppies and a puppy that died shortly after birth, according to the suit. Gwynne grew so large during the pregnancy that she was unable to eat normally or walk, and the puppies had to be delivered by cesarean section. "She continued to bleed for three months, and was unable to care for her puppies," Hyman said. "She ultimately had to be spayed" -- destroying her reproductive and economic value to Jacobs, and ending her show career because 
spayed or neutered dogs cannot compete in American Kennel Club shows. 
Gwynne had one litter of puppies previously, and would have been bred again several times, Hyman said. Purebred Pembroke Welsh corgi puppies are valued at $2,000 to $3,500, he said. 

Hutchison, who is recognized by breeders internationally as an authority on small animal fertility and reproduction, produces approximately 150 frozen semen litters yearly, according to the Web site for Animal Clinic Northview. The suit alleges four counts of negligence, fraud and breach of warranty, and seeks compensatory and punitive damages of $800,000 per count. Three other veterinarians who are shareholders in the clinic -- Brian Greenfield, Randall Hutchison and Matthew Wilson -- were also named in the suit.


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## sammydog (Aug 23, 2008)

I just read this, I would be SOOO upset to use the services of of someone who is "recognized by breeders internationally as an authority on small animal fertility and reproduction" and this happened...


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

sammydog said:


> I just read this, I would be SOOO upset to use the services of of someone who is "recognized by breeders internationally as an authority on small animal fertility and reproduction" and this happened...


No kidding. Hutch has done two surgical inseminations for me, resulting in beautiful puppies... It's shocking, really.


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## cubbysan (Mar 13, 2007)

Well, this happens in the human world, so I guess it can happen in the dog world too.

The sad part is that the owner of the female probably signed a waiver, so I wonder if she can actually sue.


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## LifeOfRiley (Nov 2, 2007)

My god... that woman must be beside herself! And poor Gwynne!

I'm really kind of surprised that this happened at Northview, given their reputation. When I was looking for a new vet several months ago, I almost settled on them. It ended up being a toss up between Northview and the clinic that we ultimately chose. 
I'm sure that accidents of all kinds happen at every clinic, but now I think I'm kinda glad that we _didn't_ go with Northview.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

cubbysan said:


> Well, this happens in the human world, so I guess it can happen in the dog world too.
> 
> The sad part is that the owner of the female probably signed a waiver, so I wonder if she can actually sue.


 
She would not have signed a waiver, per se. She would have signed an authorization for treatment. And one should expect it to be reasonable that a Repro Specialty Clinic would not make such a mistake. It's similar to going to the hospital and having your left leg amputated instead of your appendix removed. You've signed all sorts of papers, but can still sue.


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

Does anyone still breed dogs the old fashioned way?


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## esSJay (Apr 13, 2009)

YIKES! Poor dogs.


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## MillysMom (Nov 5, 2008)

How terrible! And that poor poor corgi.


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## Noey (Feb 26, 2009)

Question - Why would they allow her to have the pups? If they knew this was possible before the birth I would think for the safety of the dog based on the sizes they would have done something?


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## Taz Monkey (Feb 25, 2007)

Noey said:


> Question - Why would they allow her to have the pups? If they knew this was possible before the birth I would think for the safety of the dog based on the sizes they would have done something?


Well because she still ended up with 2 purebred corgis, and that's $4000!!


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

Noey said:


> Question - Why would they allow her to have the pups? If they knew this was possible before the birth I would think for the safety of the dog based on the sizes they would have done something?



Maybe they didn't know until the "abnormally large" puppies were born and they knew something wasn't right??


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

there's no market for pyrorgis?


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## BearValley (Nov 30, 2008)

hotel4dogs said:


> there's no market for pyrorgis?


No, they're too flammable. Sheesh, everybody knows that!



Wow, that's more than an oops though.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

Noey said:


> Question - Why would they allow her to have the pups? If they knew this was possible before the birth I would think for the safety of the dog based on the sizes they would have done something?


As I understand it, it was not known that the semen she was inseminated with contained that of the Great Pyr. By the time it was apparent that there was something going on, it was too late.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

after I posted that, I thought of periogis instead. Time to go eat.




BearValley said:


> No, they're too flammable. Sheesh, everybody knows that!
> 
> 
> 
> Wow, that's more than an oops though.


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