Veterinary schools provide shelter medicine care
by Mary Guiden
October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month. Organizations including the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) celebrate rescued canine counterparts and encourage people to open their homes to a dog in need.
More than six million companion animals — including cats and dogs — enter U.S. animal shelters every year, according to the ASPCA.
Veterinary teaching hospitals at universities across the country have shelter medicine services, which aim to improve the quality of life of animals in shelters. At UC Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, residents and students conduct non-invasive clinical research with shelter animals, provide shelters with assistance and work with shelters to improve the overall physical and mental health of shelter animals.
The UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program, which is privately funded, also works to inform shelter leaders to implement a humane, community-centered and science-based approach to animal care and shelter management. The program maintains a Resource Library, managed by UC Davis and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, for anyone working in this space that has questions, whether it’s related to an outbreak, prevention efforts or facility design.
The University of Florida’s Shelter Medicine Program in the College of Veterinary Medicine periodically conducts a statewide census of animals that pass through more than 150 animal shelters across the state.
A recent UF study found that the state’s animal shelters struggled to hang on to years of lifesaving progress during the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Shelter admissions of animals and former pets surged by more than 36,000 cats and dogs in 2021, an increase of 11% over the previous year. University researchers reported that euthanasia of cats increased for the first time since the Shelter Medicine Program at the College of Veterinary Medicine began reporting statewide data in 2013.
In Colorado, the Dumb Friends League — which provides shelter services for companion animals and equine — has teamed up with Colorado State University to expand access to veterinary care. A new hospital that opened its doors at the start of 2022 is expected to care for nearly 8,500 pets per year, according to a story by Sarah Rumple for STATE magazine. The Dumb Friends League will help train CSU veterinary students at this new facility.
Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine provides guidelines on services provided for shelter animals, including cats and dogs. The college has provided health care to thousands of shelter animals on their way to being adopted. In addition, Iowa State University veterinary students enhance their education by treating these animals, and the shelters win by saving money through this free program. Learn more in this story from the Iowa State University’s news team.
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