Vet accused of abuse
Blaine, MN (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Sep 8, 2004
County: Anoka
Disposition: Not Charged
Person of Interest: Todd Varnes, DVM
Dr. Todd Varnes of the Affordacare Veterinary Clinic faced allegations of abusing animals and verbally abusing his employees. His license was suspended Sept. 1, and a hearing will be held today to decide whether to continue that suspension.
Varnes faced similar charges in Indiana, where his veterinary license was revoked four years ago. But he applied for his Minnesota license before the Indiana license was revoked, and Minnesota officials didn't know about that revocation until last March.
The Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine, which licenses veterinarians, is handling accusations against Varnes that include having temper tantrums in which he threw animals, leaving the building while animals were under anesthesia, and operating on pets without proper anesthesia. There also are allegations that he verbally abused employees in ways that included swearing, yelling and making sexual remarks.
In Blaine, Varnes and the Affordacare Clinic charged about half as much as other clinics for spaying and neutering animals. That makes them popular with cash-strapped animal rescue groups.
The office manager of the Affordacare Clinic, Gretchen Anderson, defended Varnes.
"He has an anger management problem with employees" but never with animals, Anderson said. "I wouldn't work somewhere that abused animals."
Anderson said the Minnesota allegations are based on complaints from a single disgruntled employee. The veterinary medicine board wouldn't say who had made the accusations.
When asked if Varnes was ever abusive to her, Anderson said, "Maybe, but I just yell back. I can swear, too."
It's unusual, if not unheard of, for a Minnesota veterinarian to be charged with abusing animals, said Dr. John King, director of the veterinary board.
Allegations against Varnes stem from his work in Indiana from 1995 through Nov. 14, 1996. That's when he was fired after leaving a new veterinary technician alone in a clinic for six hours - more than the permissible two-hour break.
The Indiana Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners received "numerous complaints from staff and clients" about Varnes' behavior, according to an order from the Minnesota veterinary board. Nearly four years later, on March 2, 2000, the Indiana board yanked his license.
In addition to being absent from his job, the board said Varnes:
• Failed to "assess and repair traumatic injuries to B.B., a cat, during surgery."
• Failed to appropriately treat a female dog in his care in 1996.
That would ordinarily have been enough to keep Varnes from getting a license in Minnesota. But Varnes applied for the Minnesota license 15 months before losing his Indiana license.
King said Varnes never told Minnesota officials about that suspension. Varnes claimed he never received formal notice from Indiana officials.
King said Indiana never reported Varnes' discipline to a centralized national clearinghouse that helps screen new veterinary applicants who have been in trouble elsewhere.
The clearinghouse routinely notifies states if a licensed veterinarian is disciplined later in other states. So Minnesota should have learned of Varnes' Indiana suspension, even if he already had a Minnesota license.
"They should have told us," said King.
Minnesota officials only heard about the Indiana suspension last March when doing a routine check after new complaints were received. The Minnesota suspension was based on complaints that Varnes, among other things:
• "Was unable to control his anger, became angry during his treatment of animals and had fits of rage during which he screamed, threw objects, cursed, slammed doors and left the clinic to drive around while animals were still under anesthesia."
• "Engaged in abusive conduct toward animals, including being unnecessarily rough when moving animals, throwing animals or squeezing their limbs and screaming at animals."
• "Performed declawing procedures on cats that were not fully anesthetized."
In Minnesota, officials recommended in March that Varnes undergo anger management classes and psychotherapy.
Since then, said King, the system has been streamlined to make sure such cases don't slip through the cracks. References
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