Cause of death revealed for Las Vegas-area veterinarian found in Lake Mead
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – A high-profile Las Vegas-area veterinarian who disappeared in April died by suicide in a drowning at Lake Mead, the Clark County coroner's office ruled Wednesday.
Crews found Dr. Shawn Frehner's body near the Boulder Islands within the Lake Mead National Recreation Area on April 18. His identity was confirmed on April 19 through dental records.
The coroner's office confirmed Frehner's cause of death was drowning with the use of pentobarbital. Pentobarbital is a barbiturate, which is a type of medication that acts as a central nervous system depressant. It is also a common animal euthanasia drug in the United States and Canada, according to the National Library of Medicine.
The search for Frehner began at Lake Mead after his keys, wallet, and cellphone were found in his truck parked at Hemmenway Harbor on April 7.
According to a missing person report filed the day after he disappeared, Frehner’s father, Rex, told police the last time he spoke with Shawn was on Sunday, April 6, at around 9 a.m., and his son told him he was having a hard time with one of the horses.
Only days before, Frehner had apologized and admitted to kicking a horse he had been paid to administer anesthetic shots to at a Nevada property. Frehner issued an apology after video of the incident went viral.
“I did not blatantly haul off and kick this horse as it appears in the video. That was not my intention at all,” Frehner wrote. “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,” he wrote.
Frehner was the subject of an investigation by Nye County deputies for animal cruelty following a complaint from the horse’s owner.
Another video obtained by Nexstar’s KLAS showed Frehner flushing a horse’s nose with a syringe, a normal practice. Shortly after, he was seen jabbing the horse in the face.
KLAS had also previously obtained records showing that the Nevada State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners placed Frehner’s license on probation in 2016, and had agreed to a year-long suspension.
The reasons for discipline included handwriting his medical records onto the back of invoices or call logs. He also gave prescription medicine to clients in “plastic baggies,” without verifying how much medicine was handed out. and had agreed to a year-long license suspension.