Exactly! This awful man should never be allowed to own animals for the rest of his life! Once an abuser, always an abuser. No matter that he is a vet. It doesn't excuse this abusive behavior, especially over tiny dogs!
I don't think he should get his dogs back until a psych eval is done and he's deemed ok to own an animal. I also think that your reporter's continued hounding of him for an interview after he clearly declined was appropriate or professional.
Maybe suspend the teaching license during the investigation so they can't teach temporarily. Then, if they're convicted, the license the teaching license should be revoked.