• DVM360_Conference_Charlotte,NC_banner
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Conference Coverage
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Politics
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Hospital Design
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Conference Listing
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
CE Requirements by State
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Veterinarians reporting abuse stuck between ethics, self preservation

February 1, 2005
Jessica Tremayne

CLEVELAND — Veterinarians often find themselves between a rock and a hard place, compelled morally to report abuse cases and bound legally with the possibilities of civil or criminal prosecution.

CLEVELAND — Veterinarians often find themselves between a rock and a hard place, compelled morally to report abuse cases and bound legally with the possibilities of civil or criminal prosecution.

Almost a dozen states have addressed the dilemmas facing practitioners, including the lack of protocols for documenting abuse cases for public testimony and fear of legal retribution.

Dr. Ralph Johnson

Texas Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA) is supporting legislation in 2005 that would add Texas to the list of 11 states that shield reporting veterinarians from criminal and punitive legal action.

"The words 'good faith belief' will be added for veterinarians' protection," TVMA general council Chris Copeland says. "The general public thinks: 'just report abuse.' But it's not that easy. Veterinarians must consider what the consequences are — to their practice, staff, the animal — that is why it is important to get some laws to protect them."

Table 1: Reporting abuse for veterinarians, it is a state issue

Advertisement

States making a change

Florida protects veterinarians with a law that shields them from criminal and civil prosecution, as does New York, Massachusetts and eight other states.

Mandatory reporting would make the best legislation because it would not only protect the animals, it can defend children, too, says Belinda Mager, spokeswoman for the Humane Society of the United States.

"There have been numerous studies linking animal abuse and child abuse, which may be the prime reason lawmakers eventually mandate veterinarians reporting animal abuse," says Ralph Johnson, executive director of the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA). "Veterinarians are protected when reporting animal abuse in Colorado and required to report child abuse."

Veterinarians are in a position to act as a sentinel for numerous types of violence. By reporting animal abuse, other abuses within the family might also be unveiled.

Justifications for reporting cruelty to animals include the veterinary oath, "to prevent suffering."

Veterinary schools have been educating students on detecting abuse actively during the last 10 years, leaving veterinarians whose schools were slow to teach subtle detection in the dark.

"Every veterinarian will see neglect cases in their career," says Dr. Gary Patronek, president of the Hording of Animals Research Consortium and professor of veterinary medicine at Tufts University. "There is no way, even in the best practices, that neglect and abuse will not be seen."

Rhode Island sentiment

In 2001, the Rhode Island Veterinary Medical Association (RIVMA) conducted a survey of 200 veterinarians to learn more about the situations their members face almost daily regarding animal abuse, cruelty and neglect.

Results showed the most common type of cruelty was lack of nutrition or care. In these cases, treatment often is possible, but euthanasia is the most common result.

Of the veterinarians polled, 63 percent say they feel they have a moral responsibility to report abuse when they see it. Other factors included the severity and frequency of the offenses.

Approximately 45 percent of veterinarians polled say they are not prepared to be an expert witness in a criminal case.

Thirty-seven percent of the DVMs say they believe their clinics have adequate standards for recognizing abuse and neglect, while 11 percent say they do not think they have adequate standards.

About 35 percent of veterinarians say police and other law enforcement agencies do not respond adequately to reports of animal abuse.

Guidelines

Seeing animal abuse in a veterinary clinic is not as clear-cut as it is in human medicine. A 1962 report by Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemuller and Silver prompted the identification of distinct signs of child abuse, such as multiple fractures in different stages of healing and retinal hemorrhages. Some of these signs might apply to animals, however, no single publication describes what to look for when ferreting out such abuse cases.

"Veterinarians should prepare themselves to present their findings in court when called upon by police or humane agents," Patronek says. "Discoveries upon evaluating an animal that was burnt, shot, tortured, etc., may be used as prima facie (Latin meaning at first view: effective in establishing fact unless rebutted) evidence of deliberate abuse."


Advertisement

Latest News

Xylazine moves from the stables to the streets

DEA reports widespread threat of fentanyl mixed with xylazine

3 Must-reads for National Poison Prevention Week

UC Davis study on eye diseases in kittens

View More Latest News
Advertisement