A Winnipeg pet owner whose cat Shadow had to have a hind leg amputated due to an error during surgery says she's glad the veterinarian has been ordered to stop practicing in 2026.
“I'm glad the decision was made and I'm happy with the way it turned out,” Noelle McIvor said. “I thought I would have to put him down because he had a poor quality of life.”
Dr. Wenchao Zheng, who has “extensive” disciplinary experience with Manitoba's veterinary regulatory authority, agreed to cease practicing and retire on June 30, 2026, after pleading guilty to professional misconduct.
Zheng was also permanently banned from performing orthopedic surgery, effective immediately, and he is required to post a notice at his Animal Hospital of Manitoba clinic and on its website that he does not perform orthopedic surgery.
He must also complete outstanding continuing education requirements by Oct. 31, renew his practice supervision agreement until he retires and pay $15,000 to cover the costs of the Manitoba Veterinary Medical Association's investigation and complaints against him.
On July 29, Zheng appeared before the investigation committee hearing of the veterinary association's grievance committee.
Documents related to this decision relate to eight previous veterinary association disciplinary cases with sanctions against Zheng dating back to 2002.
The decision said Zheng has “extensive disciplinary history with the MVMA and has demonstrated a persistent disregard for their ability to sanction members and be a self-regulatory body, thereby bringing the profession into disrepute.”
In a letter addressed to members of the veterinary association's board after the decision, Zheng said he had been “unfairly disciplined.”
“I feel that on many occasions I have been subjected to systematic discrimination by the MVMA grievance committee over the years,” he wrote.
“The only viable explanation is that I and Manitoba Animal Hospital have been subjected to discriminatory practices on the basis of race or ethnicity as defined by the Canadian Human Rights Act.”
Winnipeg veterinarian Dr. Wenchao Zheng agreed to cease practicing on June 30, 2026, after a Manitoba Veterinary Medical Association panel of inquiry found him guilty of professional misconduct.
Veterinary Association interim registrar Barb Kryzanowski responded to his allegations via email.
“Dr. Zheng's disciplinary history is the result of the peer review committee fulfilling its mandate to review, investigate and prosecute complaints (where warranted) that were received from members of the public,” Kryzanowski said.
“MVMA’s action was initiated and necessary due to complaints MVMA received from Dr. Zheng’s clients.”
According to Kryzhanovsky, this is the first time that an MVMA investigation committee has revoked a veterinarian's license.
“This is the most severe sanction that the commission of inquiry can impose.”
Dr. Zheng said in an email that he is “ready to retire” if he can find one or two veterinarians to take over his practice. He tried to sell it for over a year.
“The Manitoba Animal Hospital may have to close its doors in 2026, what a shame,” he said.
He also said he charges clients lower exam fees than other animal hospitals in Winnipeg, and his practice offers a veterinary fee subsidy program that has waived $253,000 in fees for more than 1,000 families.
The board of inquiry examined four complaints about Zheng's veterinary work – two from members of the public in 2023 and two complaints from the MVMA registrar in 2024.
Two recent complaints from pet owners involved cats. One of them was McIvor's complaint about Shadow's care.
Zheng diagnosed young cat Shadow with severe osteoarthritis in his right hip and performed surgery in August 2023, but Shadow was still lame after the surgery, the decision said.
Shadow's right hind leg had to be amputated about four months later by another veterinarian.
“It was gut-wrenching to watch him recover,” said McIvor, who worked in Dr Zheng's veterinary practice and filed a complaint against him with the veterinary association the same day of the amputation.
“[Shadow] wasn't happy. Every time he moved he would just cry and act aggressive and couldn't walk. He was rocking back and forth and couldn't turn around without falling,” McIvor said.
“It’s terrible to watch,” McIvor said, “and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.”
Zheng wrote that he realized he caused Shadow's post-operative limp and told McIvor he was responsible.
He said he was “willing to accept full financial responsibility for improving Shadow's quality of life” and that he paid another veterinary hospital $3,418.83 to cover the amputation of Shadow's right hind limb.
In the second case, at a July 29 hearing, the board of inquiry found complications after Zheng performed surgery on another cat's left hind leg, as well as other problems related to the cat's treatment.
Two cases brought before the veterinary association's registrar involved Zheng's failure to complete previously prescribed continuing education in subjects related to his veterinary practice.
solution And order by the Manitoba Veterinary Medical Association's complaints committee, was posted on the MVMA. website in October.
The decision states that only a board-certified orthopedic surgeon is allowed to perform orthopedic surgeries at the Zheng Clinic on Main Street.
Orthopedic surgery is used to treat diseases of the bones, joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, spinal cord and nerves, the ruling said.
Despite previous requirements that Zheng complete several hours of continuing education, “he appears to have serious deficiencies in knowledge of current anesthesia guidelines,” which are “critical to the safe and ethical provision of surgical services of any kind, not just orthopedic ones, to the public,” the investigative panel said in its decision.
The panel also said that as an experienced veterinarian, Zheng should know the requirements for obtaining informed consent for medical and surgical procedures, as well as ensure prompt referrals for treatments outside the scope of his expertise, such as orthopedic procedures.
McIvor believes the MVMA should do more to hold veterinarians accountable when they have numerous instances of professional misconduct.
“I don’t think the slap on the wrist has done anything for some of the vets who have repeatedly committed crimes against them,” McIvor said.
“I think they need to hold their doctors to a higher level and a higher standard than other people.”
Gordon Goodridge, a retired veterinarian, has managed Zheng's practice for the past two years and has “come to know him as a hard-working veterinarian who goes above and beyond to provide service to his clients in the financially depressed area of Winnipeg,” he said in an email to CBC News.
“It is not always easy to provide state-of-the-art veterinary care when many clients cannot afford that level of care,” Goodridge said.
“Dr. Zheng appears to be highly respected among his staff and clients.”
