Dog Vet Loses Job After Being Caught With Animal Porn

A vet has been prohibited from practicing after he was charged with possessing bestiality pornography.

Canine psychotherapist Walter Dingemanse, of Berkshire in the U.K., downloaded bestiality images involving animals and women, reported Surrey Live.

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) held a tribunal and concluded that Dingemanse can no longer practice.

The 35-year-old married surgeon also downloaded child porn and set up a group on the app Kik called "pervy dads."

Dingemanse was arrested in February 2019 and police recovered a hard drive of indecent images of children and animals. He was sentenced to eight months imprisonment, suspended for two years, at the Oxford Crown Court in October 2021.

Prosecutor Alice Aubrey-Fletcher said police became aware of Dingemanse's crimes when they received intelligence linking his internet IP address to a message thread on the app Kik. While using the app, he shared fantasies of wanting to be sexual with young children.

"The defendant claimed to be interested in children younger than 4 years old," Aubrey-Fletcher said.

After Dingemanse was handed his sentence, Judge Michael Gledhill reflected on the nature of the crime.

"You trained as a vet, you successfully undertook a Ph.D. in canine joint biomechanics and you have been working in this country for at least three years as a veterinary physiotherapist for dogs," he said.

"I immediately ask myself how can a man of such ability and intelligence stoop so low as to actively engage [in] conversation with another male about fantasy sex with children and talking about your desire to have sexual relations with a four-year-old.

"It is quite impossible to understand, and I have read with care the pre-sentence report and the character references that help a little way to explain why it came about that you relieved the loneliness you felt during the time of these offenses by taking part in those conversations, aided with this filthy material that you had downloaded."

He added of the bestiality pornography: "Bearing in mind your profession I find that very concerning indeed."

When interviewed by police, Dingemanse had confessed to police that the images were his. He also said he was deeply ashamed and disgusted with himself.

He also pleaded guilty at the magistrates' court to possession of indecent images of children and extreme pornography.

Dingemanse was also ordered to pay £420 ($570) costs, carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and complete a 40-day sex offender rehabilitation program. He will be a registered sex offender for 10 years.

Newsweek has contacted the RCVS for comment.