It was early morning when Moxie, Sampson, and Cleo arrived at Dane County Humane Society (DCHS) from Angel’s Wish in Verona. Unable to provide the physical exams and spay and neuter surgeries needed because they don’t have an onsite veterinarian and there’s an ongoing veterinary shortage, Angel’s Wish reached out to DCHS for help. Most shelters and rescues require dogs and cats to be spayed and neutered prior to adoption, so these kinds of hurdles lead to prolonged stays for furry residents.
After participating in a 2021 public vaccine fundraiser for a clinic that had experienced staff turnover and needed help with spay/neuter and other veterinary care, DCHS took the initiative to start a program the following year to assist other shelters and rescues with these services.
“In DCHS’ Animal Medical Services (AMS) department, we found that we had the surgical capacity to grow this program, and we were hearing from other organizations that this assistance was needed,” says Dr. Uri Donnett, DCHS chief shelter veterinarian. Seizing this opportunity wouldn’t just benefit DCHS, but would address the needs of other shelters and help animals get adopted sooner.
The shelter partner program was formalized and began in fall 2022. DCHS created a contract, yearly price list, and established a few new partners. “Our goal is to generate revenue for DCHS while providing access to care and vet services,” says Uri. “One of the main needs we fill is to give our partners timely access to spay and neuter services so they can keep their populations moving. We provide these services at a low cost to ensure they are accessible to other shelters.”
A particularly expensive service DCHS provides at a much lower price is dentistry. DCHS sent their own residents out for dental procedures until 2012, when they received enough generous donations to establish a dental suite. This is why DCHS worked hard to make dental services affordable, to lift some of the hurdles limiting which animals could receive the services.
DCHS is also able to handle more extensive medical cases that require follow-up visits with veterinarians, something facilities with limited access simply cannot provide. Some of these cases may have ended in euthanasia for the animals had it not been for DCHS’ services. “On a case-by-case basis, we have been able to transfer more extensive medical cases into our care, so we can get them what they need and adopt them out,” says Uri. “Thus removing the cost from our parent shelter and helping increase our lifesaving capacity.”
In 2023, the first full year of DCHS’ shelter partner program, DCHS was providing surgical and medical services to three organizations, including Angel’s Wish on a weekly basis and to four partners on an as-needed basis. AMS performed 780 surgeries for these groups, mostly spay and neuter and dental, and nearly 1,000 exams and certificates of veterinary inspections. In addition, DCHS transferred eight critical medical care cases from Wisconsin shelters to help these animals heal before finding them new families. Among these cases there were two cats with broken pelvises, a kitten with a dislocated jaw, and two kittens battling the potential fatal virus panleukopenia.
“DCHS is very lucky to have a close relationship with the University of Wisconsin–Madison and to have veterinary interns, students, and a clinical instructor,” says Uri. “This means there are a lot of vets present, but in order to grow these services and help more organizations, we needed another veterinarian that could see these partners at DCHS and travel to the other organizations when needed.”
Enter Dr. Sophia Chao. She had recently completed her shelter medicine veterinary internship with DCHS when she was hired in July 2023 to fill the new position of shelter support and community veterinarian. While maintaining monthly schedules and regular communication with current shelter partners concerning surgery dates and medical cases, Sophia also travels to partner shelters to perform services. Part of her job involves developing new partnerships with other organizations.
While reaching out, Sophia often hears common obstacles faced by other shelters and rescues. “One big challenge is always budget and getting animals the veterinary services they need at a price that the shelters and rescues can afford,” says Sophia. “Another issue is access to veterinarians. We try to provide our partners with a timely alternative medical and surgical option so they can get the animals in their care the medical assistance they need.”
Sophia examined Moxie, Sampson, and Cleo. Moxie and Cleo then underwent spay surgery and Sampson neuter surgery. Cleo also received the dental care she needed. After everything was finished, the trio was ready to return to Angel’s Wish, where the rescue would continue the search for their new families.
“We have had an increased number of shelter and rescue organizations reach out interested in assistance, but we need to balance what we are able to do with the program and the daily care and surgery of our own shelter population,” says Uri. “[That said], we want to make sure that we are able to support any additional partners. Our future goals are to be able to provide more services to our partners at their locations, opening up new spots for partners at DCHS, but also helping to limit the stress on the animals traveling back and forth.”
Not every shelter has the same resources as DCHS, but it speaks to the spirit of its work that DCHS is ensuring all shelters are able to access resources when needed. The work is for the well-being of all animals, which means reaching out and bringing in. Sophia says, “This program is important because we are providing low-cost veterinary services and increasing access to care for other shelters and rescues.” As DCHS sees it, until all shelters and rescues are thriving, there’s more work to be done.