Anti-Flea/Tick Product Made My Dog Sick

I applied an anti-flea and tick medication to my dog (as per the instructions on the box) and my dog ended up having a very bad reaction. I ended up having to take the dog to the emergency vet and was charged several hundred dollars. The box has no warnings about possible side-effects to the dog (but does have warning about effects to humans).

I contacted the manufacturer and asked for a reimbursement of my vet bill. They sent a formal decision claiming they could only reimburse me less than 1/3 of the actual vet bill. They said in the letter that "they determined" my dog was under the required weight for the product to be used, even though the vet report I sent them does NOT list the dog's weight at all, and I have repeatedly told them my dog weighs well over the required 20 lbs. Where they got this "your dog doesn't meet the weight requirements" nonsense, I have no idea. Perhaps they contacted my vet and asked him, but he has no way of knowing since he DID NOT weigh my dog. In fact, he asked me how much she weighed.

At any rate: In order for me to accept their "reimbursement" they are requesting that I sign a Release. This Release uses language like (and I'm paraphrasing):

Quote:

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"I hereby release and forever discharge any claims against "Company X" arising from any incident, accident, occurrence, or loss due to the use of "Product X."

It goes on:

"I agree not to make any oral or written communication which disparages or has the effect of damaging the reputation of Company X."

Lastly, it says:

"I expressly agree that this Release and above-described payment are not to be construed as an admission of liability by Company X."

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There has been a large backlash about this product from a lot of consumers, based on my online research. I called the store where I bought it from and the store manager told me that they have already pulled it from the shelves because of so many customer complaints.

My question: Should I accept the terms of the company and accept less than 1/3 of my vet bill? It seems to me that by agreeing to pay me anything at all that they are indeed accepting fault with the product, which is contradictory to their statement that my dog's illness was due to her being too small to safely use the product. In other words, if it is my fault (as they claim in their decision) why pay me anything?

I am not very wealthy and do not have the money to spend on attorneys. Is it even worth pursuing?

I cannot answer your legal question but did want to add that I belive I know what product you are talking about and yes, there are lots of reports of doing harm to cats & dogs, regardless if they matched the weight or not. It's not a good product and never again use anything made from that company!

In the future when you need flea/tick treatment stick to the brands that are needed to be purchased from your Vet, you can get frontline, Revolution, and all the other good named brands from your vet & any vet. It may cost more but you'll realized that more you spend on the better stuff the less chance you have of these bad reactions.

Goodluck

Why not have your vet weigh the dog and document the weight to the company?

i have pets.
please post or pm me the product name please

thanks

Actually - there is nothing libelous about posting the name of the product here. As long as everything the OP wrote is truthful then I'd like to know the name as well!

The only thing I can think of if you want to try to get paid for the full amount of the vet bills is to sue in small claims court (& also sue for court costs). You can sue without a lawyer in small claims court. Otherwise, you can take the settlement offered & sign the release.

I hope your dog is doing fine now.