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We're in the
News!!
Click Here
for the 5-12-12 Daily Sentinel Article
"Animal Lover,
control officer
Steve Bryant"
Click Here
for the 4-8-12 Daily Sentinel Article
"Real Life Heroes
Diana Hensley
and Charles Bright
honored"
Click Here
for the 3-25-12 Daily Sentinel Article
"Real Life Hero
Diana Hensley"
Click Here
for the 3-25-12 Daily Sentinel Article
"Real Life Hero
Charles Bright"
one of our benefactors
Click Here
for the 3-18-12 Daily Sentinel Article
on HSNC Board
Member
Claire Gilmore
"Horse Whisperers:
local woman adopts
once-wild horse,
Mylo"
Click Here
for the 2-9-12 TVMA
Announcement
"2012 TVMA Companion
Animal Practitioner
of the Year:
Dr. Wendy Blount
"
Click Here
for the 2-6-12 Daily Sentinel Article
"In Need of a home..."
Click Here
for the 12-27-11 KTRE Piece
"Nacogdoches encourages
local support of
animal shelter"
Click Here
for the 11-9-11 TACA
announcement
"Blount wins
2011 Bilderback Award"
Click Here
for less recent news
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Many people wonder about what quality services a low cost shelter
clinic possibly
could provide. Many don't know what to expect. Frankly, we scare some people. We
will tell you here a little more about who we are, what we do and why we do it.
Who We Are. We are a group of
volunteers and 1 paid employee who come together each Thursday to work with the
clinic veterinarian to actually do something about the excess pets in Nacogdoches
County who have been killed by the thousands every year at our shelter for
decades now. Many make the mistake of
blaming the shelter that is burdened with the task of collecting the excess pets in
the area, working desperately to find homes for as many as possible of these
beautiful animals while caring for hundreds each day (including weekends and
holidays), and then facing the horrifying task of being forced to euthanize those
that have no family, foster homes, rescue or any other safe place to go. Shelter
staff are not the problem, and in fact they have
been for many years the individuals working most diligently and tirelessly against
all odds to solve the problem.
We came together to train for 1 year prior to opening to the public. We may
be unpaid, but we are highly dedicated, yet sometimes unruly, well trained animal
nurses who tend very carefully to our patients' every need, regardless of the
owners' ability to pay for services. We are veterinarians, veterinary technicians,
veterinary students, nurse practitioners, teachers, professors, pharmacists,
entrepreneurs, financial advisors, home makers, social workers, students, shelter
directors, and much more.
Dr. Blount |
Michele |
Jenn |
Jamie |
Judy |
Brenda |
Betty |
Lauren |
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Diana |
Carol |
Violeta &
Pamela |
Nancy |
Wanda |
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What We Do. Dogs and cats in our
community come from only one place -- other dogs and cats.
The only way to reduce the number of pets in our county to
approach the number of available pet homes in the area is to stop the "puppy and
kitten mills" at their source -- by spaying and neutering dogs and cats before they
give birth to unwanted puppies and kittens that will ultimately have nowhere to go.
We strive to provide the highest quality
surgical and nursing services, including the following:
surgeons cap and gown for each surgery.
patients are shaved and prepped for surgery in a room outside the O.R. to keep
the O.R. as clean and fur free as possible.
each patient has a dedicated staff member other than the surgeon to monitor
anesthesia and be the advocate for the patient.
Surgery tables are heated for patient comfort and safety.
Our recovery team never ever leaves any patient unattended, providing heat
support, pain medication and tender loving care as needed.
We have a supervisor or tech make a "late night check" on every patient staying
in the clinic after surgery, to provide for their needs and comfort.
If our vet is not doing the "late night check," he or she is on call for any medical
attention that is needed by patients in the clinic. There is no other veterinary
hospital within 100 miles that provides this "late night check" for every elective
surgery patient.
We call to check on every surgery patient within a few days of going home, to
answer questions and to provide any follow-up care needed.
Why We Do It. Because we enjoy
caring for animals and understand their value, and we want to create the first
program in the history of
Nacogdoches County to successfully reduce shelter intakes and euthanasias over the
next 5-10 years. Studies show that the single most important factor to whether a
pet is spayed or neutered is household income. Currently, 32% of citizens living in
the Nacogdoches City Limits and 23% of those living in the county live below the
USHHS poverty standards, and these pet owning citizens simply can not afford to have
their pets spayed and neutered. Year after year, these pets have litter after
litter, and thousands of them ultimately find their way to our shelter.
Those living below HHS Poverty standards have access to our clinic at no cost to
them at all.
As well, we provide low cost services to those who qualify for various state
aid programs for middle income families. Those who adopt from the shelter and those
who are members of 501(c) Animal Rescue groups are also welcome to use our clinic at
low cost if they so desire. We offer them access to our low cost clinic as a way of
saying thank you for doing their part to re-home animals in need.
We are able to provide low or no cost surgical services not because we cut
corners in any way compared to local full service veterinary hospitals. Rather,
what we do is made possible by the
generous support of our volunteers that donate thousands of hours each year, our
benefactors that donate tens of thousands of dollars each year, and the City of
Nacogdoches
which administers the program and gives us a place to work. We are a self
supporting program which currently makes no demands on the City Budget.
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