NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — How many times can someone fail the exam required to practice veterinary medicine? Records I obtained show a controversial vet at the center of a police investigation failed it at least 10 times.
The NAVLE — the North American Veterinary Licensing Exam — is the test all vets in the country are required to pass.
It appears that in 2015, Prashant Pandya took the NAVLE in India but failed. Later that year, he graduated from Anand Agriculture University. He applied for a state vet license in Tennessee at least twice, and his applications show 9 more exam failures from 2015 to 2022.
"That is crazy," said Christine Davis, whose dog Reggie was treated at Caudle Vet.
Dr. Walter Clark has been practicing for decades and helps the board that requires the exam.
"In general, most graduates of U.S. colleges are able to pass the NAVLE on their first or second attempt. They're generally allowed to take the first attempt still in med school," Clark said.
For context, 94% of those at UTK's vet school passed last year.
Clark says the NAVLE is a difficult test, and for foreign nationals like Pandya, it's a time-consuming, expensive process. He says most foreign vet schools' training is not equivalent to U.S. standards.
"Sometimes the backlog can be extensive, but there are people who do it, follow all the rules and become successfully licensed, and that's why you should do it," Clark said.
"I've heard of failing multiple times. It's not unusual to see some people fail 5, 6, 7 times," Clark said.
Before December 2025, applicants could only take the NAVLE a maximum of 5 times. The state health department says there was a "reset" after that, which means each examinee has a clean slate. Clark says depending on how the board interprets Pandya's case, he could have more attempts to pass the NAVLE.
In 2020, the state closed Pandya's most recent application for a license. NewsChannel 5 has continued to look into accusations that Pandya was performing surgeries on animals without a state license.
"I don't know how he hasn't been shut down years ago," Brooks Davis said.
A month after Christine and Brooks Davis say Pandya surgically removed a mass from their dog Reggie's leg, the wound severely deteriorated.
"It looked like he got shot with a rifle and it smelled," Brooks said.
The wound was so bad that other vets discovered the surgery had complicated Reggie's health even more. The Davis family ultimately made the decision to put Reggie down. They say they don't want other families to be forced to make the same tough decisions they did.
After reporting on Reggie and two other dogs — two of which died and one that survived serious complications after treatment at Caudle Vet Clinic — NewsChannel 5 learned that law enforcement was investigating the East Nashville clinic.
"It seems if he has a license or doesn't, shut down and then investigate after the fact," Brooks said.
Caudle Vet has not responded to calls or emails.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
