Good Vet, Bad Vet, Criminal Vet?
Who decides?
And how do you protect yourself and your pets?
Beaverton, Oregon, police have arrested and charged a local veterinarian with two felony counts of aggravated animal abuse and two misdemeanor counts of animal abuse. The veterinarian, Dr. Daniel God Koller, has been the subject of other investigations, has previously lost and then regained his license to practice, and is the subject of complaints and protests from members of the public.
Public complaints and protests amplified last month after an Aloha man named Allan Worman reported a horrific experience under Koller’s care.
Spot Magazine talked with Worman days after his experience and has been working and following this story for the past month. Since that date, Worman has protested outside Koller’s clinic, warning the public and the media about what he considers a dangerous and cruel doctor.
Few details
On October 9, Worman took his elderly dog, Coco, to the Beaverton Companion Pet Clinic to be euthanized. Coco, who had sustained an injury earlier in life that limited her mobility, was suffering from the aging process and the joint pain and stiffness that come with it.
The clinic wasn’t Worman’s primary veterinary clinic, but because his long-time vet had relocated and was a longer drive from home, Worman opted to use the nearby Companion Pet Clinic where he’d previously taken his two dogs for routine vaccines. The vaccination appointments had gone well. “So they had a female doctor who did the vaccines and it was fine,” Worman told Spot.
“I’m 65, so unfortunately I’ve had other dogs put to sleep in my time,” he said. Knowing the emotionally painful moment is also a fairly routine medical procedure, it made sense to him to take Coco to the nearby Companion clinic to be euthanized. They said he could remain with her through the process, and he planned to personally transport her body to the place where he’d already arranged mortuary services.
What happened, though, is a matter for investigators to decide.
When Worman spoke with Spot Managing Editor Michelle Blake on October 17, just eight days after his traumatizing ordeal, he was still trying to piece together what happened. There are only a few details we can objectively report here, with the help of security video advocates obtained from the clinic and shared on social media.
Allan Worman’s dog, Coco, was 14 years old when he had her euthanized
Security video shows Worman and Coco in the exam room, waiting and saying goodbye. Coco rests calmly on the exam table. Worman kisses her on the head and pats her gently.
A doctor (reportedly Koller) and a staff member enter the room. There’s no audio of the footage, but it shows the three conversing. Koller picks up Coco and carries her out of the room. Worman seems to hesitate, as if he’s unsure whether he’s to follow.
A second camera captures Koller and his staff member placing Coco on a table in the treatment area. Several minutes into the video, Worman wanders in. Koller motions to him to leave. Worman retreats.
The last minutes of the video show Koller returning Coco to Worman in the exam room. The dog’s head is flopping awkwardly and it’s apparent that she’s conscious but altered or sedated. Koller is seen gesturing, waving his arms, appearing angry, pointing to the door where he’s telling Worman to leave, pointing to a different door where he’s telling his assistant to leave.
Questions with few answers
From the video, all that’s clear is that Worman brought Coco to the clinic, had some sort of confrontation with the doctor, and left with a dog who was alive but at least partially sedated.
Worman said he carried Coco to a neighboring clinic, where the staff dropped everything they were doing and immediately helped him. Coco was euthanized that day by the second veterinary clinic.
Beaverton Police Department’s press release says the recent arrest stemmed from a report it received on September 20 — a couple of weeks before Worman’s experience in Koller’s clinic. It’s unclear if authorities are investigating his claims that he believed he saw tape around Coco’s muzzle when he entered the back treatment room, or that Koller shouted at him to get his “damned dog” out of the clinic.
Koller’s booking photos, provided by Washington County Sheriff’s Office
Patients don’t talk
Portland employment attorney Ben Rosenthal won a wrongful termination suit for one of Koller’s former employees. The former employee said she’d been wrongfully fired for reporting concerns to the veterinary board.
Spot Magazine reached out to Rosenthal last month, when Worman spoke publicly about his experience.
“All I know is I did try a case against that guy and that’s the limit of my knowledge based on an employee who worked there and raised concerns with the vet board,” Rosenthal said.
Rosenthal — who was sure to stress that he’s an employment attorney who doesn’t try malpractice or criminal cases — has watched Koller’s story because of his experience with the employment case, and because Rosenthal has a dog and takes a general human interest in this case.
Asked what advice he’d give to people to protect themselves and their pets, Rosenthal pointed out, “The question almost answers itself. There are so many complaints against this guy.”
Aside from the obvious choice to avoid veterinarians with reputations for cruelty or incompetence, the best line of defense is to build a trusting relationship with any medical team, and to remain aware of what’s going on.
Most veterinarians are very good, Rosenthal points out. But when there’s an outlier, it can be difficult to prove that a vet is bad.
For starters, veterinarians’ patients can’t tell an investigator or a judge what happened to them. “[Human] medical malpractice is also very difficult, even with patients who can talk. You have to show a medical impact and you have to show a violation of the standard of care,” he says, adding, “It’s hard for the consumer to know what the standard of care is and what falls below the standard.”
Rudeness vs. Malpractice
On a Facebook group organized by people who say they and their pets are victims of Koller, some members have told stories similar to Worman’s account of being told to get his “damned dog” out of the clinic.
In all professions, licensing boards are bound by standards of practice that impact patient safety, health, and wellness. A complaint about a surly or even verbally abusive doctor is difficult to act on.
Malpractice, physical abuse, and other forms of physical harm may be actionable, but only if they’ve proven. And that’s where investigators face challenges and consumers often have more questions than answers.
Speaking out
In Worman’s case, he’s reported his experience to Oregon’s veterinary licensing board. It remains to be seen what the board will be able to do regarding this case or any of the others currently under investigation.
But for Worman, whose final moments with Coco turned from sorrowful goodbye to traumatizing — and then public — ordeal, the final outcome is less important than the act of telling his story.
“It was an emotional time and I wasn’t really thinking about what was going on. You just want to keep your life together and get through it. That’s what hurt me so bad, that I watched her hurt. She should have been asleep.”
So now, he says, speaking to the media, protesting outside the clinic, and sharing his stories on social media is about preventing others from the same pain. And it’s about honoring his companion, Coco. “I’m doing this for Coco.”
Advice from Oregon Veterinary Medical Association
The Oregon Veterinary Medical Association — a nonprofit that advocates for its member veterinarians throughout Oregon and helps inform the public about vet-related news — says personal referrals are probably the best source of a good recommendation when looking for a veterinarian to treat your family members.
Online reviews may be helpful, but only to a point. Research shows that people are more easily motivated to post a bad experience than a good experience. “Online reviews can be instructive, but may also be weighted toward negative experiences, as positive experiences don't show up on review sites proportionately,” says the OVMA’s Raina Dey.
The OVMA has a web page with more tips on selecting a veterinarian.
The American Veterinary Medical Association has an expanded list of recommendations on its website.
And, finally, if you have a problem with your vet and/or their staff that you can’t resolve by speaking to them, or where the issue seems to be a violation of the Veterinary Practice Act, an option is to file a complaint with the Oregon Veterinary Medical Examining Board, which is the governing and licensing authority over all licensed vets in Oregon.