Collecting your beloved pet's ashes is never a nice moment, but it's even worse when your cat has been mistakenly euthanised by the vet.



Wellington couple Kelly and Richard Warriner-Simpson dropped their family cat Tequila to CareVets in Johnsonville for treatment, but were stunned when they received a call saying a terrible mistake had been made.



The couple told The Herald on Sunday that Tequila had a sore eye after a fight with another cat and they had expected to collect him later in the day with some antibiotics.



Instead the 7-year-old moggy was wrongly euthanised when the vet grabbed him instead of a similar looking cat in the next cage.



A heavily pregnant Mrs Warriner-Simpson received the news at work and was so upset she started to have contractions.



"I was so upset and I just wasn't dealing with it well," she told The Herald.



"Our midwife was amazing and was able to calm me down and stop [the contractions]."



The couple have laid a formal complaint with the Veterinary Council.



CareVets Johnsonville practice manager Nick Cooper said they had apologised and paid for a new pet.



The vet was "extremely messed up" and had taken leave.

She had been given a formal warning and told she would be supervised when she returned to work.