Correction Dec. 17, 2009 — Dr. Thomas Stevenson, a Honey Brook veterinarian, was fined $750 for animal cruelty following a court hearing Wednesday. The amount of the fine was incorrect in the story below.
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The story of a 9-week-old puppy that last March had part of its tail removed without anesthesia was repeated again today, this time in court.
Dr. Thomas Stevenson, the Honey Brook veterinarian who performed the procedure, gave his version of the incident last week before the state Board of Veterinary Medicine.
And Stevenson repeated it again Wednesday before an overflow crowd of about four dozen spectators — many of whom seemed to be there to show support for him — in a Quarryville district court hearing room.
Stevenson testified that when he went to Samuel King's dog breeding kennel on March 10 to perform a routine inspection, King told him he had cut off most of the puppy's tail in a grooming accident.
Using soap and scissors, the veterinarian testified that he trimmed away a remaining flap of skin where the tail had been, so that it would not get caught on the kennel's wire fence or be chewed off by other dogs.
But at the end of the hearing, after listening to hours of testimony, District Judge Stuart Mylin found Stevenson guilty of a single, summary charge of cruelty to animals and fined him $50.
Stevenson testified that he did not give the puppy anesthesia because the small dog, a poodle mix, was calm and did not seem to be in pain as he scrubbed off the scab with soap and water and trimmed the skin with a pair of scissors over a sink in the barn.
"The puppy didn't make a sound," Stevenson said. "It was a very calm and quiet puppy the whole time."
Stevenson, who has been practicing for 28 years, acknowledged that he would have handled the situation differently at his clinic.
But Tara Loller, who witnessed the procedure while working undercover for the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, described it as "one of the worst things I've ever seen."
Loller said the dog was shaking, yelping and "screaming bloody murder" as Stevenson held the puppy under steaming hot water and repeatedly cut at the skin with a pair of scissors.
After the procedure was over, Loller said she purchased the puppy for $200 and was told by Stevenson to keep the wound clean, apply an antiseptic ointment three times a day and take it to her own veterinarian.
When the hearing was over, Stevenson hugged his family members and some supporters before leaving the courtroom without commenting on the decision.
His attorney, Joshua Autry, declined comment other than to say he would appeal Mylin's decision and ask for a new hearing on the matter.
Assistant District Attorney Christine Wilson said she was pleased with the outcome of Wednesday's hearing.
Stevenson initially was charged with animal cruelty on a misdemeanor level, but that charge was reduced to a summary offense at Wilson's request.
Wilson said Stevenson neglected the dog by performing the procedure without anesthesia and proper surgical conditions, as well as follow-up care.
Mylin said he believed Stevenson to be "skilled" and "caring," but believed the veterinarian "got caught into a situation where he did what he needed to do to satisfy his client," which was to help King sell the dog.
The state board, which suspended Stevenson's license in May, is still deciding whether to permanently revoke the veterinarian's license.