Incompetent vet

[ConcinusMan]

It's quite likely that the snake would have died anyway if he didn't try something so what do you do? Try something that might work, or do nothing and let it die? Sounds to me like the vet did exactly what he should have done, and that is, try to get the blockage dislodged. I think all that happened here is that trying that aggravated an internal injury/condition that was already there. You say you think he broke his spine but I doubt it.

Calling the vet incompetent because it didn't work (and even may have caused her to die sooner) isn't fair. Doctors lose patients. Doesn't mean it was due to incompetence. I think the vet did what any vet would do, and quite often, it works.

[scott5017]

It's quite likely that the snake would have died anyway if he didn't try something so what do you do? Try something that might work, or do nothing and let it die? Sounds to me like the vet did exactly what he should have done, and that is, try to get the blockage dislodged. I think all that happened here is that trying that aggravated an internal injury/condition that was already there. You say you think he broke his spine but I doubt it.

Calling the vet incompetent because it didn't work (and even may have caused her to die sooner) isn't fair. Doctors lose patients. Doesn't mean it was due to incompetence. I think the vet did what any vet would do, and quite often, it works.

Im not sure if you could be more wrong.

I massaged the snake just fine and was very careful and caused no injury, the snake was healthy and moving before the exam, afterwards immobile and limp from her lower third body then died THAT night.She was not in immediate danger, she wasnt losing weight and we hadnt even tried mineral oil yet.

While i cannot 100% confirm exactly what happend, from the evidence i have and from my vast experience i know what happened here.Im not stupid, i know the vet didnt do it on purpose but she did make a mistake and she did kill my snake and i have a right to be frustrated about it especially as i have no way of recouping my losses here.

[chris-uk]

Im not sure if you could be more wrong.

I massaged the snake just fine and was very careful and caused no injury, the snake was healthy and moving before the exam, afterwards immobile and limp from her lower third body then died THAT night.She was not in immediate danger, she wasnt losing weight and we hadnt even tried mineral oil yet.

While i cannot 100% confirm exactly what happend, from the evidence i have and from my vast experience i know what happened here.Im not stupid, i know the vet didnt do it on purpose but she did make a mistake and she did kill my snake and i have a right to be frustrated about it especially as i have no way of recouping my losses here.

Have you spoken to the vet since the fateful visit? If you haven't how do you know that they wouldn't have been willing to help find the cause of death? And if they did indeed break the poor girl's spine, don't vets in Canada have liability insurance?
I appreciate your frustration, and I'd be angry speaking to a vet if they'd killed my tetra, but I would most certainly have spoken to the vet as soon as I discovered my dead snake.
If this is the only vet that you have access to for treating your snakes I'd consider it to be important to raise this death with them. Firstly from an educational standpoint, but also I would want to try to regain some trust in the vet. If on speaking to the vet I found them disinterested and unhelpful, then they wouldn't get any business from me again. Everyone makes mistakes, and should be given the opportunity to make amends for them.