2/27/2008 Animal Angels

February 27, 2008

The local news just had a story of pets being abandoned. With the poor housing market, these pets are being left in abandoned homes and out side in the cold when the owners move. One of the reasons stated is that when the owners move into an apartment or in with friends, they can no longer have pets in the new location.

This is a very sad situation. One that has many different layers of accountability, blame, and neglect. I will first say that it is never acceptable to injure or abuse an animal or knowingly neglect their care. I took an oath to relieve suffering in animals. On a professional level, I carry my oath with the highest regards. On an ethical level, I am torn.
I try to put my self in the other persons place. The question I ask is “What would cause me to leave my own animal?” Did I get evicted and lose my home. Did I have to take my family to live in a shelter or at a relative’s house?
This is one area that my wife has taken on. Dr. Hammerle has created a program called Animal Angels. It is a program based out of the Pet Doctor hospital that will provide temporary housing to pets from troubled houses. It was set up in conjunction with several county organizations to help people in need. One of the core examples of why Animal Angels was created would be a woman in an abusive relationship who won’t leave the home because of concern for the pets. In this case, we are contacted by a human shelter and told of this situation. We take the pets into our clinic and care for them. We spay or neuter them at no cost to the owner and address any other medical problem. We then house the animals for what ever time is needed for the person’s situation to become stable enough to take the animal back.
I am excited to say that we have helped many people in St. Charles County with this program.
Our professional obligation is the relief of animal suffering. My moral and human obligation is the relief of the suffering of my fellow man.
Sometimes I think my job to be difficult and uninspiring. Yet, when I think of the smiles when people get to see their dogs come back home, I know we are making a difference.
-Dr. Coletti