State Acts Against Vet Accused of Cruelty
State veterinary authorities said Tuesday they are seeking to revoke the license of a Newhall veterinarian accused of choking and beating animals under his care.
James Edward Bullock also is accused of providing negligent care that resulted in misdiagnoses and, in one instance, the death of a dachshund that never awakened after it was anesthetized to have dental work.
Among the accusations against Bullock in a complaint by state Atty. Gen. John Van de Kamp is that the veterinarian beat an unruly horse in the ribs and back with a hammer.
Gary H. Hill, executive officer of the state Board of Examiners in Veterinary Medicine, said Tuesday that authorities are seeking revocation of Bullock’s license because pet owners have complained about his treatment of animals for 9 years. Earlier allegations of unprofessional behavior and care prompted an administrative law judge to suspend Bullock’s license for 45 days and to place him on 5 years probation in 1984, Hill said.
Refused to Comment
Bullock, a veterinarian since 1972 and who once treated horses in Morocco during filming of “The Return of the Black Stallion,” refused to comment on most of the allegations Tuesday. But he called the accusations of abuse “totally false,” blaming them on disgruntled former employees who were fired for poor performance or for stealing on the job.
“I never hit a horse with a hammer,” he added.
Bullock’s case will be heard by an administrative law judge, probably in the spring, Hill said. An administrative complaint listing seven violations of state law was filed on behalf of the veterinary board by Van de Kamp on Sept. 27 after a 1-year investigation.
It is alleged in the complaint that Bullock kicked an Akita in the head in 1985 after the dog lunged at him as Bullock tried to administer an injection. It was that same year, according to the complaint, that Bullock beat an unruly horse with a hammer.
Bullock behaved unprofessionally by discouraging an employee from seeking treatment for an eye injury suffered at work in 1985, the complaint says. Instead, Bullock treated the employee’s injury himself, the complaint says.
After a Boston terrier nipped at his assistant while Bullock prepared the dog for X-rays, the veterinarian choked the dog and threw it against a wall, the complaint charges.
Diagnostic Procedures
The complaint says Bullock failed to follow proper diagnostic procedures when he examined a chow with stomach cancer and a German shepherd with a broken leg.
In another case, a 12-year-old dachshund named Tiffany died a few hours after she was anesthetized to have her teeth cleaned and some dental surgery in 1986, according to the complaint. Bullock acted negligently, the complaint says, because he let Patrick and Margaret Wiltse of Newhall take Tiffany home while the dog was still unconscious after the surgery.
“It was a case of neglect,” Patrick Wiltse said. If Bullock had kept the dog, something could have been done to save her, he said.
The Wiltses sued in March, 1987, and won a $350 judgment against Bullock in Small Claims Court, Margaret Wiltse said. Bullock appealed, and a Los Angeles Superior Court judge dismissed the case a month later, she said. Bullock said the case vindicated him.
Hill said the veterinary board investigates about 50 of the 300 complaints it receives against veterinarians each year. The licenses of about two veterinarians are revoked each year, he said.
