Edmonton veterinarian charged with punching, kicking dogs

An Edmonton veterinarian is facing animal abuse charges in relation to a series of incidents involving dogs over a nine-month period.

Police say between August 2015 and April 2016, the veterinarian and owner of the Hollick Kenyon Veterinary Clinic in northeast Edmonton punched and kicked two dogs. 

He is also accused of keeping food from the dogs and confining them for extended periods of time.

Both dogs were registered to the clinic and lived there as office pets, according to police. 

Officers from Animal Care and Control seized the dogs in April and called police.

Jun Yang, 47, is charged criminally with wilfully causing unnecessary pain, suffering or injury to an animal.

Yang also faces three charges under the Animal Protection Act: causing an animal to be in distress, failing to ensure animal has adequate food and water, and failing to provide animal with adequate shelter, ventilation and space.

"It's not something that comes across our officers' plates every day," said Anna Batchelor, an EPS spokesperson. 

There are no additional complaints against Yang, but anyone with information is asked to contact police, Batchelor added.

Owner denies allegations

Yang has been released on his own recognizance and continues to work at the clinic, which operates 24 hours a day.

He said the allegations against him are untrue and that he has nothing to hide.

"Hopefully this country is ruled by law, not by the rumours," Yang said.

Hopefully this country is ruled by law, not by the rumours.- Jun Yang, owner of Hollick Kenyon Veterinary Clinic

Clients filtered through the clinic doors Wednesday afternoon. Some requested a copy of their files so they could switch veterinarians.

Jason Shaw stood outside with a picture of his dog, Charlie, on his phone. Shaw took his pet to the clinic earlier this year and said he was unhappy with the service he received from Yang.

"I'll sit here for an hour and show people what's up because I don't think he should be practicing," he said.

Another pet owner and long-time client said she won't switch clinics based on allegations. Wanda Whitford has seven pets and remembered how Yang once worked through the night after a porcupine quilled three of her dogs.

During that surgery, Whitford said she played with one of his clinic dogs to pass time. She said the animal was friendly and playful.

"He was attentive to his clinic dog," Whitford said about Yang. "This is all a little bit of a shock to me."

Veterinarians in the province are regulated by the Alberta Veterinary Medical Association (ABVMA), which holds the power to suspend members and licenses. Facilities are audited on a three-year rotation by the association to make sure they meet provincial standards.

"We'll have to wait and see what plays out, but it is shocking to have a veterinarian with these charges," said Darell Dalton, a veterinarian and ABVMA's Registrar Secretary Treasurer.

"This is not very common," Dalton said. "As veterinarians, we consider ourselves to be leaders of animals welfare and to have one of our members charged in violation of that is shocking. We certainly hold our membership and our profession to a higher standard than the average citizen."

Police said the two dogs they seized are now in a safe place.