Brought to you by PrideVMC Gold Partner Merck Animal Health 

Written by Dr. Robert Duquette, Associate Director for Merck Animal Health Veterinary Professional Services

 As the season of giving and winter holidays approach, I find myself reflecting on the family, friends, and opportunities for which I’m grateful. This in turn leads me to being thankful for my career with Merck Animal Health and all the associated benefits that extend far beyond financial. One such benefit is the company-wide volunteer program which encourages and allows us to identify innovative ways to have a positive impact on the lives of people and animals around the world.  This program, along with Merck Animal Health’s unconditional support of the veterinary profession, led to our U.S. partnership with The Street Dog Coalition.  

puppyThe Street Dog Coalition’s first clinic was held in Fort Collins, Colorado, in May of 2015 with the goal of providing free medical care and related services to pets of people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness using a One Health approach to street medicine. The volunteer pool isn’t limited to veterinarians, with many team members being veterinary technicians, social workers, doctors, dentists, allies, and advocates including students of veterinary medicine and all One Health fields of study.  Their values include:

Unconditional Love: Everything we do is done with love and kindness, without judgement or conditions

Compassionate Activism: We seek the courage to “swim upstream” and strive to always do the right thing

Unbridled Collaboration: Our work cannot be done in a silo; we rely on supporters and community partners to help us think outside the box, complement existing resources, establish trust, walk-the-talk, and deliver accessible, quality care

Empathetic Empowerment: We strive to authentically connect with our teams and with our community partners to build trust with our clients and help them embrace their inherent dignity, resilience, self-worth, and hope

person with dogSince those humble beginnings, it has since expanded to over 50 teams across the United States and continues to grow, on average adding a new clinic every 1 to 2 months. 

Strong Start in Sacramento

I recently had the privilege of helping launch their newest team in Sacramento, California. Most teams start small and grow organically as they become established, gradually gaining volunteers and the trust of their clients. However, in this instance, the need was tremendous, volunteers were abundant, and we collaborated with a pre-existing medical group that already had trusted relationships with established camps along the American and Sacramento Rivers. The Sacramento Street Dog Coalition team was composed of volunteers from:

● Elica Health Centers 

● City of Sacramento including the mayor’s office 

● Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association 

● Street Medicine Sacramento

● Sacramento County Public Health

● UC Davis Veterinary School

● Koret Shelter Medicine program

● Front Street Animal Shelter

● Paul Mitchell School at MTI College to provide human haircuts

● Merck Animal Health

● The Street Dog Coalition Leadership Team, including Dr. Jon Geller, National Director and Founder 

man with dogThe veterinary medicine team alone was composed of 10 veterinarians, 27 UC Davis veterinary students, 9 veterinary technicians, and 6 individuals handling administrative duties.  We provided veterinary services for over 40 community members and their 79 companion animals, approximately 62 dogs and 17 cats!  Needless to say, the event was a tremendous success with future plans including quarterly One Health “super-clinics” and monthly veterinary clinics providing vaccines, parasiticides, and general preventative care.

I encourage everyone to learn more about The Street Dog Coalition by visiting their website, consider volunteering with your local team, or even help create a new team if one doesn’t already exist in your community. The friendships and emotional fulfillment I’ve received from serving “both ends of the leash,” as well as witnessing the direct positive impact to my community are tremendous. 

street dog coalition in action

As veterinarians and pet lovers, we all understand and appreciate the power of the human-animal bond and how important pets are to our own wellbeing. I’m honored to support The Street Dog Coalition (in partnership with Merck Animal Health) to underscore our unconditional commitment to pets, pet owners and those who care for them. 

For more information on Merck Animal Health’s ongoing support of The Street Dog Coalition, visit merck-animal-health-usa.com/responsibility

 

 

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