Miami doctors operated on the wrong side of Army soldier’s dog, lawsuit says

Miami-Dade County admin September 23, 2026 0 Comments

Miami doctors operated on the wrong side of Army soldier’s dog, lawsuit says

Raphie Shin and Daniel Lepore adopted a Cane Corso puppy almost two years ago, a welcome addition to the military family.

Lepore, 29, a career U.S. Army soldier stationed in South Florida, bought the pup, Apex, for his girlfriend for Christmas in 2024.

“He loves this breed. For Christmas, he asked me to choose between a dachshund and a Cane Corso,” Shin said.

The couple found the dachshunds too expensive, so they adopted Apex from a breeder.

“He loves this breed so much,” Shin said.

All was going well for the trio until Lepore and Shin noticed Apex limping in April 2025.

The couple took Apex to Good Care Animal Clinic in West Miami-Dade on April 8, where veterinarian Dr. Adalberto Cotelo diagnosed him with osteochondritis dissecans, a developmental disorder in which a flap of cartilage grows over the shoulder and becomes very painful, Shin told the Miami Herald.

Radiological scans also confirmed lesions on the dog’s right shoulder, and Cotelo recommended an operation to scrape the excess cartilage, Shin said.

Apex underwent surgery on April 25 of that year. The surgery was performed by another veterinarian, Dr. Mario Cabrera, who owns a company called Cutting Edge Anesthesia Repair, whose website describes him as a “mobile veterinary surgeon” who partners with “over 100 animal practices throughout the region.”

The couple picked Apex up and returned him home and were billed $5,198 for the operation, Shin said. Lepore had to sell his motorcycle to pay for the procedure, she said.

The couple soon realized Apex had a bandage on his left shoulder, and was still limping. Cabrera operated on the wrong shoulder.

“We were just so excited to have him home. That’s why we didn’t realize it right away. Then we looked at him and were like, hold on, this is wrong,” Shin said.

Apex, a large dog weighing 130 pounds and belonging to a naturally active breed, now has trouble moving around and running and is in constant pain, Shin said. The limp is permanent.

“We’re the ones who discovered that it was his left shoulder that had been opened and operated on. No one told us. We were the ones that discovered it, which is the shocking part,” Shin said.

The couple are suing Cabrera, Cotelo, Good Care Animal Clinic and Cutting Edge Anesthesia Repair in Miami-Dade Circuit Court for veterinary malpractice, fraudulent representation, deceptive practices and intentional infliction of emotional discomfort.

Because Lepore is in the Army, his bosses did not want him to discuss the lawsuit with the media, said the couple’s attorney Willard Shepard, with the Miami-based Rivkind Law Firm.

Daniele Lentini, an Orlando-based attorney for Good Care Animal Services and Cotelon, declined to comment on the lawsuit, but told the Miami Herald in an email:

“While we appreciate your journalistic efforts, we simply cannot comment on pending litigation. Doing so runs the risk of influencing any future jury empaneled in the case.”

Attorneys for Cabrera and Cutting Edge Anesthesia Repair did not respond to the Herald’s request for comment.

When Lepore spoke with Cabrera about the wrong shoulder being cut open, he acknowledged that it was, but told them it “needed it anyway,” according to the pending lawsuit, which was filed in November 2025. That’s not true, Shepard said, noting the surgeon who eventually operated on the correct shoulder noted that as far as he could tell, the left shoulder was fine, and there was no indication Cabrera did anything else except cut it open during the April 25 procedure.

“Not really apologetic. Very weird conversation. Very strange conversation,” Shin said.

Rather than refund the money Lepore paid, the Good Care Animal Clinic offered him a “free redo,” according to the complaint. When Lepore refused, the clinic’s management said it would return the money only if Lepore agreed to sign a settlement agreement containing confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses, Shepard said.

Shepard then got involved, and the clinic returned the payment in June of that year and only after the attorney told the company “that keeping [Lepore’s] money was not allowed in Florida for a service that they never actually provided,” the attorney told the Herald.

Over the more than 70 days, Lepore and Shin did not have the money to pay for an operation to treat Apex’s right shoulder, and his condition grew worse as a result of the delay, Shin said.

“He’s a very tall dog. He’s roughly the height of a Great Dane, which is what is having a greater impact on him, than would if he were a dachshund or a Chihuahua. He is gigantic. And, orthopedically, this has made it a lot worse for him,” Shepard told the Herald.

The couple found another vet to operate on Apex’s shoulder, but because his condition was worse, the surgery was more expensive. A North Palm Beach veterans nonprofit, Wounded Veterans Relief Fund, donated the final $1,430 to pay for the operation, which happened in July 2025, according to the lawsuit.

The surgery was a success, but Apex continues to have complications from his condition and because of the delay in getting it addressed from the beginning, Shin said.

“Right now the consequences we’ve been dealing with are, he drags that right shoulder. He drags that whole limb because he has muscular and bone imbalances, and that causes him to drag his nails … and causes him to bleed,” Shin said. “Now we’re restricted in walking and the amount of exercise he can do, because he can’t last very long. That makes his cardiovascular health very poor. He’s a young, working breed. He needs to be able to play, run and jump, but he’s very restricted in all of his movements.”