Guardian Angel

The Atlanta Constitution has been closely watching and reporting on the story of Pilot, a puppy who missed his vaccination for Parvovirus, got very sick, and racked up a $1,640 bill in getting him back to health.

After that, the story gets complicated, and the fur starts to fly. It becomes a "he said/he said" between the vet, Dr. Gary Innocent, and Pilot's owner, Josh Gomez.

Josh planned to pay $1,152, the original amount he said was quoted to him when he brought Pilot to Dr. Innocent's office. The delay in getting an agreement on charges caused the bill to increase and the gap became a non-trivial amount of $972.

On Dr. Innocent's end, he has stated that the increasing costs were communicated to Josh each day he came in to visit Pilot. When it became clear that Josh may not be able pay the balance, he gave him a deadline of yesterday to settle or the dog would be declared "abandoned" and give him away to another home or surrender him to the local animal shelter, where euthanasia could be an option if he wasn't adopted. After a barrage of calls, emails, and letters from a concerned public, Dr. Innocent said he wouldn't surrender Pilot to the shelter, but would give him to a "star client" where the puppy "would be well cared for."


Through all this, Carol Diamantis saw the real issue and stepped into help. Saying, "If I was in the position, I would hope somebody would help me out," she paid the balance in full and watched as Josh and Pilot were reunited.

This is awesome. Carol gives all of us an opportunity to consider how we can make a real difference in people and pet's lives. But are some other lessons learned:

• Pet ownership is not cheap. Josh, who is 22, is relatively new as a wage-earner, so has a limited cushion of funds. Does this mean he shouldn't have a dog? No. But he could look into pet insurance and possibly a credit card for emergency use.
• A veterinarian told me that the debate over whether and when pets need vaccinations is one of the biggest issues she has to deal with. Making it clear when and what should be done for a new pet's health is critical. The internet is a very powerful tool, but it can be contradictory and confusing on a hot topic like this.
• Dr. Innocent, as business owner, seems to have lost sight of how to make his business really prosper. He would have done much better by finding a win/win solution for his client/patient as well as his business. Sending a letter saying that if the bill wasn't paid in full, he would "report this matter to all authorities including Gwinnett County Animal Control for pet abandonment and disposal", is harsh to say the least. He has said in interviews that this whole incident has hurt his business, and it's no wonder.

It's wonderful to see Josh and Pilot reunited. I wish them both a long, happy, and healthy life together.