‘We put welfare first and our veterinary teams work hard to deliver the highest standards of care’

tant point. If Vets for Pets was wrong it potentially meant its records could not be trusted. And if you were wrong I might be left wondering what else you might be dramatising.

I asked if you could supply any dated texts to friends or family letting them know your cat had died on July 20. Sure enough, within five minutes of me asking, you supplied me with a heartbreaking exchange with your mother timestamped from that day, in which you said. “He’s stopped breathing, at the vet, praying they can do something”. The exchange ended with “he’s gone”. When I presented this information to Vets for Pets proving its records were wrong, it declined to comment.

I’ll be honest, as an outsider looking in on this case it is difficult to establish what happened during the three appointments and whether this vet can be held responsible for your cat’s death. To borrow a phrase from the late Queen, this is definitely a case of “recollections may vary”.

What is clear, though, is that this vet has been willing to clear his name by painting you as an irresponsible pet owner, effectively shifting the focus away from him and onto your inaction.

I feel Vets for Pets has also used this to its advantage by making you out to be not only a bad pet owner, but also an abusive customer, which I can see no evidence of. Throughout it has been keen to point the finger of you, but stayed silent when it needed to recognise its own failings.

Vets for Pets has refused to pay you any compensation or apologise for the way its handling of your case has made you feel. The only option left for you, now that mediation has failed, is legal action. But be warned, the burden of evidence required will be high. You would probably need to prove that the vet’s notes were forged and inaccurate to get a payout. So all that’s left for me to say is that I’m so sorry for your loss, and for the stress the vet’s response has caused you. You’ve switched to a different vet for your surviving cat, which I hope you’ll get on better with.

A spokesman for Vets for Pets said: “We put pet welfare first and our dedicated veterinary teams work hard to deliver the highest standards of care. Advanced tests were offered to help determine the underlying cause of the cat’s case, and medical treatment was also provided for his symptoms – as well as the opportunity to book further appointments. It is always very sad to hear of the passing of a beloved pet and our deepest condolences are with the customers at this difficult time.”