Judges recommend license suspension for Texas veterinarian who killed cat with arrow

Texas veterinarian Kristen Lindsey is under investigation by the Washington County Sheriff's Office after bragging about killing a cat with a bow and arrow and posing with the dead animal in a photo posted to Facebook. Lindsey has been fired from her position as a veterinarian at the Washington Animal Clinic in Brenham, KBTX Media reported Friday. less Texas veterinarian Kristen Lindsey is under investigation by the Washington County Sheriff's Office after bragging about killing a cat with a bow and arrow and posing with the dead animal in a photo posted to ... more Photo: Screenshot Via Facebook Photo: Screenshot Via Facebook Image 1 of / 60 Caption Close Judges recommend license suspension for Texas veterinarian who killed cat with arrow 1 / 60 Back to Gallery

A Texas veterinarian who killed a cat by firing an arrow through its head and posted a picture of the dead animal to Facebook could see her license to practice suspended for a year, if a state board agrees with an administrative law judges' proposed decision.

Documents filed with the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medicine said state administrative law judges recommend a five-year suspension for Kristen Lindsey, but that four years be probated, meaning her license would be suspended for just one year and she could return to work on a probationary status.

While Lindsey once bragged that she had killed a feral cat, judges believe that Lindsey had actually killed her neighbor's domesticated pet cat named Tiger, according to documents signed Aug. 15.

RELATED: Texas veterinarian fired, under investigation after bragging about killing cat

Another veterinarian testified that the distinct markings of Lindsey's neighbor's missing pet cat matched those of the cat in the Facebook post and neighbors testified that their cat never returned after Lindsey's Facebook post was made, according to the recommendation. Lindsey killed the cat on April 15, 2015.

The since-deleted Facebook post and photo shows Lindsey smiling while the cat hangs from the arrow.

"My first bow kill, lol. The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through it's [sic] head! Vet of the year award ... Gladly accepted," Lindsey wrote on the post.

While Lindsey may have believed the cat was feral or wild, judges wrote that "she did not take reasonable steps to ascertain that the cat did not have an owner," and said her conduct was "reckless."

Judges disagreed with an earlier recommendation from the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medicine staff suggesting the veterinarian's license be revoked saying there was no indication that Lindsey "has a character flaw that makes her a continuing threat to animals or people or an 'imminent peril to the public' in any way."

Staff Writer Joshua Fechter contributed to this report.