My wife and I (Robert) went to get our cat Marshmallow fixed (07/22/2008) for about $80.  When we picked her up after being spayed, we were given several days worth of pain medication (Metacam oral).  My wife and I both thought it was odd as we had never heard of post-surgery medication for neuter/spay, but we went along with it.  The vet going over the medication gave us no info about the medication other than how to administer it.  No warnings of any kind.  I gave the first dose at night before I went to bed exactly as directed (she seemed fine at the time).  I woke up at 5am and when I went to check on Marshmallow she was already dead.

 It made absolutely no sense, the only thing I could think of that might have killed her was the pain medication.  I 'Googled' the two words 'Metacam' and 'cats', and I was horrified by the search results.  The FDA had not approved Metacam oral for cats because of the narrow safety margin.  And even the directions for dogs under 10 pounds is that Metacam has to be administered through putting on food - Marshmallow weighed less than 7 pounds and the vet told me to administer the dose directly into her mouth.  And because Marshmallow was drugged earlier that day for the spaying (possibly with a Metacam injection), it only made the danger of using Metacam oral even greater.  I'll never take a vet's word at face value again.  A cat should never die from being fixed, especially in such a tragic way.  Since I was the one that administered the Metacam, I [in a way] feel like I killed our own cat.  This could have been so easily prevented had the vet gave us some kind of warning, I would not have used the Metacam.  A few days of pain is better than risking death.  I would do anything to have Marshmallow back now, even if it meant having to keep her as an unfixed cat in constant heat incessantly whining.

When my wife confronted one of the vets on staff the vet played ignorant and dumb, claiming that the copy of the FDA study my wife had on Metacam oral was outdated and that Metacam oral was completely safe for cats (both lies).  The vet wouldn't even give us our money back.  She hid behind a clause in one of the documents I had signed before the surgery.  We went to a different provider and paid $117 to have our beloved Marshmallow cremated and put in an urn.

Here is the name and location of where our cat was fixed:

Value Pet Clinic - Renton Highlands
3901 NE 4TH ST STE 103
RENTON WA  98056-4100
http://www.valuepetclinic.com/