Vet addicted to drugs mixed up dog’s leg with tail and had trouble typing ‘Pip’
Michael Mario McCarthy, who holds dual Irish/American citizenship, had to be reminded by the dog’s owners exactly which part of their pet needed treatment at a veterinary hospital in Liverpool.
Mr McCarthy was stumbling and slurring his words when he attempted to pick up the dog’s leg, before being reminded the tail needed treatment.
Mr McCarthy was struck off by a disciplinary committee at the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) after admitting four “disgraceful conduct”.
The central London hearing was told Mr McCarthy was sacked from three different veterinary practices around the country after stealing drugs.
First, he lost his job as a locum at the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals in Plymouth, in January last year, after staff there became suspicious.
In February, Mr McCarthy moved on to a job at the Hadrian Veterinary Group in Hexham, Northumberland, where it was again noticed that drugs were going missing.
The panel heard he also unnecessarily prescribed heroin for a terminally-ill dog and later asked the owner if he could buy the drug back.
After being sacked again, and interviewed by police, he went on to get a job in March at the Alder Veterinary Hospital in Liverpool.
It was there that he treated a greyhound called Pip, brought in with an injury to her tail.
When Mr McCarthy tried to type details of the treatment into a computer, he hit keys at random and needed help spelling “Pip”, the hearing was told. Mr McCarthy, 31, of Melbourne Street, Newport, on the Isle of Wight, admitted stealing controlled drugs from his three former employers — including midazolam, diazepam and morphine.
