Veterinarians behaving badly

Three incidents involving veterinarians popped up in courts across the country recently.

• A veterinarian in Melbourne, Fla., faces felony charges after pointing an unloaded gun at several employees' faces and even pulling the trigger to make a point about the back door being left unlocked, according to a Sept. 30 article in Florida Today. The Melbourne Police Department arrested the veterinarian on Sept. 23. He posted $5,000 bond and was released later that day. The State Attorney's office hasn't filed charges.

• A municipal judge found a veterinarian who practices in Columbus, Miss., guilty of misdemeanor animal cruelty in September, according to an Associated Press article. A former employee testified that she saw the doctor repeatedly kick and beat an Australian shepherd after it bit him in the hand. The veterinarian said he was defending himself and his employee and that the dog sustained injuries while thrashing about in a porcelain tub where it was supposed to be bathed. The doctor was ordered to pay a $500 fine.

• A veterinarian's defense attorneys in San Angelo, Texas, are trying to get evidence thrown out because they say authorities obtained it by illegally placing a tracking device on the doctor's car. By tracking the car, investigators found the stock tank where her husband's body, missing since January 2005, was discovered in March. The veterinarian is charged with murder and tampering with evidence.