Winnipeg vet with 11 rulings against him faces new complaint

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This article was published 24/10/2023 (1046 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg veterinarian who has been sanctioned 11 times in 24 years is facing a new complaint filed to the province’s regulatory body.

David Strickland says he brought his young dog, Chewbacca, to Wenchao Zheng, owner of Animal Hospital of Manitoba, for care in August.

The pet owner alleges Zheng misdiagnosed the dog with canine parvovirus and presented him with a high estimated bill.

“He said it would cost almost $2,000, and the dog would have to be in hospital or it would have to be put down. I came so close to putting my dog down because I don’t have $2,000,” Strickland told the Free Press.

After being charged $389 for the appointment, Strickland said he left the Winnipeg animal clinic to mull how to gather the needed money. The next day, he sought a second veterinary opinion.

“That’s when I found out my dog had worms… and it would only cost me $275,” he said. “I was so mad I went on the internet and that’s when I found (Zheng) had 11 (prior Manitoba Veterinary Medical Association regulatory decisions against him).

“If I had known… I never would have gone there, no matter how much of an emergency it was.”

Strickland filed a complaint with the provincial regulatory body — and personally picketed the Main Street vet clinic, with a sign discouraging people from taking their pets in for care.

“On the first day, (Zheng) came out, and threatened me with his lawyer,” he said. “On the third day, he gave me my money back.”

Zheng could not be reached for comment. His office said the veterinarian was travelling.

According to the clinic’s website, Zheng graduated from veterinary college in China in 1983, and later received a master’s degree. He immigrated to Canada in 1989, and completed two years at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine.

Zheng founded the Animal Hospital of Manitoba in 1996.

However, in the last 24 years, Zheng has had 11 decisions against him by regulatory committees.

Last month, the Manitoba Court of Appeal upheld an association inquiry panel’s 2022 ruling Zheng had engaged “in conduct that displays a lack of knowledge of, or lack of skill or judgment in, the practice of veterinary medicine” for his treatment of a dog with a chronic skin condition.

Zheng was ordered to complete a total of 32 hours of continuing education in the use of anti-microbials, appropriate drug use in treatment of allergic skin disease, medical record keeping, and veterinary client communication.

Zheng was also told he had to work under the direct supervision of another veterinarian for two years at his expense, be subject to random practice inspections, pay a fine of $2,000 and reimburse the association $50,000 (representing half the cost of its investigation).

Corey Wilson, veterinary association executive director and registrar, said he couldn’t answer why Zheng is still allowed to practice after so many investigations and sanctions.

“The MVMA cannot comment on why one form of sanction was preferred by the inquiry panel over another,” he said in an emailed statement. “Any penalty or sanction ordered by the inquiry panel must be consistent with the public interest and legal principles applicable to professional regulatory penalties.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca