A California veterinarian’s license has been revoked after an inspection that found a stomach-churning list of more than two dozen violations including “deceased neonatal puppies” discovered in open buckets in a freezer and containers of animal parts. He also was accused of botching medical procedures and causing animals to suffer.
One pet owner told The Times that his 15-year-old Chihuahua, Mr. Tillman, still has not recovered from his ordeal.
Rodney Ken Hatayama, of the South County Veterinary Hospital in Selma, Calif., surrendered his license on Jan. 31.
Mr. Tillman’s X-rays show a surgical procedure done by Rodney Ken Hatayama at the South County Veterinary Hospital in 2015.
(Eric Garcia)
An inspection on Aug. 16, 2022, of the Fresno County facility by Jessica Sieferman, executive officer of the California Veterinary Medical Board, found “unsanitary conditions” throughout the premises, including “poor ventilation, deceased animals stored in an unsanitary manner, and unsterile surgical equipment,” according to court documents.
The inspector also observed that nearly every room in the facility was “cluttered, dirty, dusty, unsanitary, and had a foul odor of blood or internal organs.”
“The sinks, wet tables, and countertops in the facility were covered with trash, dirty endotracheal tubes, pet hair, used scalpel blades, used syringes, grooming supplies, buckets of animal parts, and dirty towels, among other things,” the document states.
A year after Mr. Tillman’s 2015 operation, Eric Garcia submitted a complaint to the California Veterinary Medical Board.
(Eric Garcia)
In total, 25 violations were documented by the inspector, including several expired medications and misbranded drugs and storage of “several deceased neonatal puppies in five open white buckets in a freezer,” the document says.
The violations also extended to food and beverages.
According to the inspector, there was a can of Diet 7-Up in the refrigerator that was next to biologicals (vaccines and Gabapentin liquid). Another soda can was found in the freezer next to frozen canine semen.
The board gave Hatayama two opportunities to address the violations in the year that followed the initial investigation but said he failed to address all of their concerns, leading to his license being revoked effective Jan. 30.
It is unclear if Hatayama was still practicing until that date. The Times reached out to the Department of Consumer Affairs, which oversees the California Veterinary Medical Board, but did not hear back as of the time of publication.
Court documents cite five incidents that took place between 2015 and 2022 in which Hatayama failed to perform the proper examination, administered a wrong dosage or failed to prescribe pain medication altogether following surgical procedures on various pets. In many instances, the documents show, he failed to properly record the medical procedures that took place or the medication he administered.
In the first incident documented, in 2015, Eric Garcia brought his 4-year-old Chihuahua, Mr. Tillman, to see Hatayama. The dog was experiencing joint pain in his back two legs. Hatayama performed orthopedic surgery on Mr. Tillman — despite not being a board-certified orthopedic surgeon. For the procedure, he used his own surgical technique; no peer-reviewed data or studies support its use, the document states. Hatayama did not prescribe any pain medication for the dog following the operation.
A month after the surgery, Mr. Tillman was still in a lot of pain, his owner said, prompting him to take him to another veterinarian, who had X-rays taken and said, “[T]here’s something wrong here.”
“The doctor told me, ‘That is not how you perform this surgery,’” Garcia said in an phone call with The Times. He later learned that Hatayama had drilled holes into his pup’s bones and tied them together with wire.
According to Garcia, he submitted a complaint to the California Veterinary Medical Board a year following the original operation. Despite pressing the board for updates on his case, he would not find out the details of the surgery until 2025, when the board filed its first malpractice allegations against Hatayama, in April.
Mr. Tillman X-rays show the surgical procedure done by Rodney Ken Hatayama at the South County Veterinary Hospital, who performed a non-peer reviewed operation on the chihuahua in 2015.
(Eric Garcia)
Mr. Tillman has since undergone four surgeries to address the original procedure performed on May 12, 2015 — but he hasn’t been the same.
“He has his good days. On the days that it’s bad, it’s work. I have to stay up with him all night because he can’t sleep,” said Garcia, holding back tears, adding that Mr. Tillman is still unable to go on walks unless he’s being carried in a backpack.
As a dog owner, he said he felt some guilt that Mr. Tillman has had to endure this pain, which has worsened due to arthritis. Above all, he is angry and says that Hatayama has not shown remorse or addressed victims publicly. He also questions the length of time that it took the board to act.
He said he hoped, however, that this case could teach pet lovers to ask more questions when it comes to medical procedures involving their furry loved ones.
“If you see something [that’s concerning],” he said, “don’t stay silent. Speak up, or ask the doctor what’s going on.”
