The case of the missing Las Vegas veterinarian who went missing after a video of malpractice went viral has come to a tragic ending.
Over the weekend, officials found the body of Dr. Shawn Frehner in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, closing the case after he went missing on April 6th. After the multi-organization search began, Frehner’s keys, wallet, and cellphone were found in his truck parked at Hemmenway Harbor, leading friends and family to start thinking the worst.
On April 18th, his body was found near Boulder Islands within the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. According to KTLA, on the 19th, the Clark County coroner’s office confirmed that it was Dr. Shanw Frehner through dental records. At this time, the official cause of death has yet to be revealed.
Frehner went missing after a vet client of his posted a video of him mistreating her animal, which quickly went viral on social media.
In the video, you can see Frehner kicking a client’s horse named Big Red. The owner of the horse, Shawna Gonzalez, fell to the ground as she was coming up from the chicken coop to see her horse being mistreated. She recalls the instance, noting that the horse was struggling to breathe, and then Frehner kicked him in the skull, fleeing her property before the horse was back up.
Gonzalez’s daughter captured the moment on camera after hearing her mother’s cries and shared it on social media. After the post began to gain traction, Frehner posted an apology for his actions right before he went missing.
“I did not blatantly haul off and kick this horse as it appears in the video. That was not my intention at all. It was done simply to get the horse in a better position so that he could breathe and get up and move, so I could again try to anesthetize.
But yes, I did kick him right in the chin, and I very much do apologize and wish this never happened.”
After the incident, Gonzalez had to take her colt, Big Red, to another animal hospital to receive treatment, which can cost thousands of dollars for a stay, and she pressed animal abuse charges against Frehner. As a horse owner, too, I don’t blame Gonzalez for pressing charges. You have to make sure that your animals are protected and prevent malpractice from happening to other clients as well.
However, after Frehner went missing, she shared that she never wanted this to be the outcome from her sharing the video or pressing charges.
“It’s horrible, I never, ever wished this upon him, I never wished this upon anybody. This is not what I wanted in the end at all.”
Once the missing persons investigation was opened, New8Now reported that this was not the first time Frehner had faced repercussions from malpractice. The Nevada State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners placed Frehner’s license on probation in 2016, in which he agreed to a one-year suspension of practice.
Frehner was given this suspension for writing medical records on the back of invoices or call logs and for giving his clients medication in “plastic baggies” without drug names or dosage information present.
One of his former clients told the news station she was a client who experienced this firsthand, and her experience with his practice was negative.
“He said, you need to give this baggie, of medicine that I made up myself, and it helps with their circulation and he goes, they won’t, you just have to force it down their throat.”
Although we disagree with Frehner’s practices, this is not the outcome anyone wanted. Our thoughts go out to the friends, family, and other relatives of Dr. Shawn Frhener during this period of grieving.
