| Complaint: | Complaint 18-05 |
|---|---|
| Respondent: | Dorie Anderssohn |
| Premises: | Bethany Animal Hospital |
The complainant had a pitbull who was such a part of the family she called him her son. He had some hot spots on his legs and penis that were treated with over-the-counter medicine and some antibiotics, but the wound on the penis wouldn't heal. They went to see Dorie Anderssohn at Bethany Animal Hospital. They had some trouble getting the muzzle on their pitbull in the parking lot and the dog's nose was scratched. During the visit Anderssohn diagnosed the penis problem as cancer and indicated that it had spread. Anderssohn seemed to suggest that there wasn't much that could be done, so the complainant declined treatment for financial reasons and asked about euthanasia costs when the dog started to suffer.
The next day Arizona Humane Society Emergency Animal Medical Technician™ Tami Murillo shows up at the complainant's house and asks her daughter where her mom is. Turns out that Dorie Anderssohn reported the complainant for animal abuse, that animal rescuers Beth Lockhart and Brenda Livengood said the complainant had abused the dog in the parking lot, and that the complainant either needed to follow Anderssohn's treatment program for the dog's penis or euthanize the dog. Anderssohn only wanted to see the dog on the way out so she could take more photos to document the abuse! The complainant was not pleased.
Since that didn't work, they got the cops involved. Detective Heather Krimm started asking questions and putting more pressure on the complainant, who responded that her dog was still enjoying his life and that she would put the dog down when the time came. Later that day she had an appointment with another veterinarian and confirmed the cancer, at which point she finally just decided to go with euthanasia. She says it was to avoid suffering in the future, but one has to wonder if the intervention from the police and the Arizona Humane Society might have biased that view. They were threatening to take her terminally-ill dog away for neglect.
The complainant was left with the memories of her dead dog-son along with criminal charges from the state. Reading the defense attorney's documents included in the complaint, one doesn't really think this family would have abused their pet. In any event, the Investigative Committee and the veterinary board had no issues with Anderssohn's conduct in the case. The associated veterinary board meeting included the debut performance of pet-loving political appointee Robyn Jaynes, Chief Veterinarian and Vice President of Medical Services at the Arizona Humane Society from 2016 to 2018. (The Board is a very humane organization, eventually having not just Jaynes but also Arizona Humane Society community relations manager Jessica Creager, Arizona Humane Society volunteer Jane Soloman, and Arizona Humane Society vet Melissa Thompson all serving concurrently.)
The Investigative Committee had no problems with any of this, or rather, they ignored it. The discussion states that Anderssohn provided reasonable advice that was declined by the complainant, then states that Anderssohn also had no motive to falsify her records. (A less laissez-faire read of the events might be that the vet and her animal-rescuer friends decided this dog should be with someone else or probably just dead; that would be a motive, would it not?) The report to the Arizona Humane Society leading to cops and criminal charges was not apparently part of the discussion at all.
Detective Heather Krimm is featured in a news article alongside Arizona Humane Society investigator and alleged pedophile Mark Smith; read more about it in 21-111. For another case where a vet calls the cops on someone about an animal she thought should die, you can read about Christina Nutter in 21-43, in which she called the cops on people after euthanizing the cat; she also posted pics of the dead cat on Facebook. It happens more often than you'd think.
Beth Lockhart eventually appeared before the state veterinary board in 2019 to share progress on drafting legislation regarding the regulation of shelter veterinarians. As of early 2023, there still is none, and more people than her have tried and failed, including state legislators.
| Source: | October 10, 2017 PM Investigative Committee Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| Dorie Anderssohn | Respondent |
| Roll Call: | |
| Adam Almaraz | Aye |
| Amrit Rai | Aye |
| Donald Noah | Aye |
| Robert Kritsberg | Aye |
| Tamara Murphy | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
| Source: | November 11, 2017 Board Meeting |
|---|---|
| Proposed By: | Jessica Creager |
| Seconded By: | Christina Bertch-Mumaw |
| Roll Call: | |
| Christina Bertch-Mumaw | Aye |
| Darren Wright | Aye |
| J Greg Byrne | Aye |
| Jessica Creager | Aye |
| Jim Loughead | Aye |
| Julie Young | Aye |
| Nikki Frost | Absent |
| Robyn Jaynes | Aye |
| Sarah Heinrich | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
The primary source for the above summary was obtained as a public record from the Arizona State Veterinary Medical Examining Board. You are welcome to review the original records and board meeting minutes by clicking the relevant links. While we endeavor to provide an accurate summary of the complaint, response, investigative reports and board actions, we encourage you to review the primary sources and come to your own conclusions. In some cases we have also been able to reach out to individuals with knowledge of specific complaints, and where possible that information will be included here.