Shelter Medicine Vrs, Veterinary Medicine

     Many of you have never heard of "Shelter Medicine". It must be the same as Veterinary Medicine just that it takes place in a different setting.... right?? Well,... no, not exactly. There are many differences between the both; but we will start with telling you that all costs of Veterinary Medicine is funded 100% by the owners of  the animals that need treatment. The major difference between the two is the "Shelter Medicine" has to be funded 100% out of pocket by the Shelter who provides such Veterinary service's to it's animals.

     As you know the costs involved with caring for animals isn't cheap so you shouldn't be surprised that Shelters are very picky about what services they provide and to which animals they choose to spend the money on. Private Veterinarians have to ability to write some services off on their taxes if they choose to do so. This is not possible with Shelter's since they are typically run by local government agencies. In Shelter Medicine the Shelters run on a tight government budget have to be very cost efficient and there is no wiggle room for obtaining extra funds.

     The Shelter's main focus is using funds wisely. This means the majority of the budget goes towards spaying and neutering their adoptable animals so they don't add to the pet over population problem that plaques the Shelter in the first place. Secondly, Shelters tend to focus on spending the money for vaccinations to keep the animals that are living in the Shelter healthy and disease free. Thirdly, they also focus on treating animals that have simple treatable illnesses such as upper respiratory infections or kennel cough with cost effective antibiotics.

      Keep in mind though, Shelter's have a very limited amount of animals that they are able to treat for simple illnesses that are treatable. Sick animals have to be held in a separate isolation area from the general population because they are contagious. The isolation room is often small because the larger kennel spaces are needed for the general holding area.  It's common that Shelters can only treat a very small amount of sick animals, usually no more than six at a time.

     If a illness requires the animal to have extensive therapy for a long period of time, this is not possible at a Shelter because space is a major issue. Skin problems such as mange can be difficult to treat and time consuming so these animals don't have a chance to be treated at a Shelter without being relocated to a private Vet that is willing to provide the services at no cost. Very few private Veterinarians are willing to take on this responsibility. Let's face it, the Veterinarians are in the business to make a profit like all other businesses.

     Treating heart worms is another sore spot for Shelter Medicine. Our Shelter opts not to screen animals for heart worms. And I'll be honest in telling you  why. It's probably a good thing because if we did screen them and they were positive it would be a death sentence for that animal. Our County does not have the funds set aside to treat them for heart worms prior to adoption, nor do we have to space to house them during treatment. We can not "knowingly" adopt out animals that has any health problems.

     When you screen for heart-worms with a blood test it doesn't tell you what stage of heart worms they are in. A positive test result is a positive test result. The screening will not tell you what stage they are in without additional funds to test and X-rays. A heart-worm infestation has several stages. The beginning stages of heart worms is very easy and cheap to treat. The last stages are very difficult to treat and very expensive. Since a positive test result doesn't tell you which stage they are in; the truth is that there would be more animals that we would have put to sleep that could have been treated with little expense to the new owner.

     Animals that come in with serious injuries, chronic diseases such as renal failure and urinary problems are also not able to be treated. Some Shelters are able to pass some of these animals on the private Veterinarians outside the Shelter that are willing to take this cost and responsibility. Most of them are not lucky enough to be relocated. Shelters often have to put these animals down due to lack of funds to treat them, lack of time necessary for treatment, and lack of space at the Shelter.

     Concerning the pediatric animals, when they come as newborns they don't have a fighting chance. If they aren't eating on their own and their is no nursing mother to feed them they are almost always signed off  by a Veterinarian to be humanely euthanized to spare them from starving to death during the holding period they are housed at the Shelter. I will tell you there is nothing worse than watching a newborn baby kitten or puppy slowly starve to death. Unfortunately shelters don't have funds to pay staff round the clock to provide the care they need every three to four hours and during the night. Secondly, the Shelter's don't have enough space to hold kittens for 2-3 months until they are large enough to be fixed prior to adoption. These are usually the ones I will often volunteer to take home with me if I'm able.

     Shelters are also leery and very careful in who they allow to foster these babies out to. Remember Shelters main focus is making sure they are spayed and neutered. Pet over population is the number one reason why Shelters have to euthanize in the first place. There are too many of them and not enough people to adopt them. So don't be surprised if you ask your Shelter if you can foster and they tell you no. Often Shelters choose to use only a few reliable foster groups and certain individuals that they trust that will bring them back to the Shelter to get fixed and adopted once they are large enough.

     Veterinarians cannot spay or neuter kittens until they at least reach 2 pounds which equals about 12 weeks old or 3 months old. I have encouraged people who have claimed to have found newborns kittens in their yard without a mother to keep them at home until they are large enough to be brought back to the Shelter to be fixed and adopted. They have much better odds when they aren't so small. Sometimes this works, most of the time they choose to leave them at the Shelter anyway knowing what their fate will likely be. It's very sad but we must always remember the importance of spaying and neutering so that these kittens and puppies haven't died in vain.

~Author, Jenni