San Francisco Veterinary Specialists partners with the animal adoption centers at Pets Unlimited and The San Francisco SPCA to care for shelter pets in need of specialty treatment; the hospital donated nearly $100,000 in care in 2008.
photo by beth sherman
San Francisco, Calif., May 21, 2009 – Thanks to a unique partnership with San Francisco Veterinary Specialists (SFVS), Pets Unlimited and The San Francisco SPCA are able to provide homeless animals with the specialty care they often need. For instance, Sid the Shelter Cat, whose current address is the Pets Unlimited adoption center, was down on his luck and had an unfortunate run-in with a car – leaving him with multiple pelvic fractures, a hind leg fracture and a severely injured tail. Utilizing designated charity funds, SFVS – Pets Unlimited’s specialty referral partner – performed Sid’s surgery at no cost to Pets Unlimited (or Sid).
SFVS works closely with The San Francisco SPCA in a similar partnership. Tillie, a lively border collie mix, arrived at Maddie’s Adoption Center with a congenital defect of her back legs. SFVS specialists performed extensive corrective surgery to reposition her luxating patellas and realign her femurs.
Each month, SFVS donates a pre-determined amount of charity care to the two non-profits and their special-needs shelter pets. In addition, SFVS provides discounted care to rescue groups across the Bay Area, such as Guide Dogs for the Blind (Marin), Rocket Dog Rescue and Grateful Dog Rescue.
“For the past four years, we’ve been working closely with the two largest non-profit animal rescue groups in the city – Pets Unlimited and The San Francisco SPCA – along with other organizations, to help provide critical specialty services where needed most. As the only multi-specialty referral hospital in the city, we’re proud to extend our services when Pets Unlimited or The SF/SPCA calls on us,” said Craig H. Maretzki, VMD, MS, DACVIM, medical director at SFVS. “These partnerships are a ‘win-win.’ We are able to give back to the community in a meaningful, effective way, and the neediest dogs and cats get second, or third, chances.”
In 2008, SFVS donated nearly $100,000 in charity care and discounted services. SFVS does not offer discounted or pro-bono care to individual pet owners; instead, the hospital works solely with its organizational partners to identify and care for the pets they refer.
“We have primarily been using SFVS’s charity funds for specialty surgery cases. This partnership with SFVS greatly expands our ability to deal with critical-needs cases like Sid, where we need to access specialty care outside of Pets Unlimited,” noted Thomas Mason, DVM, director of veterinary services at Pets Unlimited.
“The relationship between SFVS and The SF/SPCA has been instrumental in not only saving the lives of many dogs and cats who need specialty surgical care, but also dramatically improving the quality of their lives,” said Jan McHugh-Smith, president of The San Francisco SPCA.
Oh, and Sid? He’s doing great, according to his friends at Pets Unlimited. He’s on his way to finding a permanent home – and doesn’t seem to mind his little “Boxer” tail at all. And Tillie? She found a loving home and is now able to do what border collies do best – run!
For more information on Pets Unlimited, visit www.petsunlimited.org. The SF/SPCA is online at www.sfspca.org.
