Animal Welfare Professionals

Updated 2/24/25 at 4:20 pm - Recording now available!

Please note: All views expressed on these calls are not necessarily endorsed by Maddie’s Fund.

We hope to see you on the next Community Conversation on Monday, 2/24/25 at 11am PT for "Designing Promising Systems to Support People and Pets" with @rachel williams, Board Member for Spay Neuter Network. 

For Rachel Rae Williams, exploring radical possibilities with questions like, "If every person and pet had a just and fair opportunity to achieve their highest level of health and well-being, how would our world change?" isn't just a way to dream big. It's a way to ground strategy, program design, and decision-making in pets' and people's needs and priorities. "We need imagination to innovate,".

In this call, she will outline six activities to better integrate social care for individuals and communities, a public health model that we can adapt to make our work more effective, with the recognition that protecting the health of people, pets, and communities is a cross-sector effort.

Register for Community Conversations hosted via Zoom: https://maddies.fund/CommunityConvoRegistration2024

Make sure you are using the latest version of Zoom when you join us!

If you are unable to make it live on Monday, this thread will be updated with the recording and resources so you can watch and share whenever you'd like.  After you watch the recording on-demand or attend the call live, be sure to complete this new February 2025 entry form to enter to win up to a $5,000 grant: https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-feb25-giveaway.htm

#AccesstoCare
#CommunityPartnerships*

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Maddie's Pet Forum Admin
Maddie's Fund
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I am already registered but going round and round on how to sign into the CC....eeek! 

Thanks to the 187+ people and paws who joined us on today's Community Conversations call! The recording is now available to watch on-demand. Below you'll find a recap of today's call and the resources shared. 

Call Recap

Welcome from hosts

• • @Christina Lee, @Christina Lee, Founder & Principal, StellaFirma Strategies
  • @Shonyae Johnson, Director of Virtual Behavior Programming, Humane Rescue Alliance
    
    
• Question of the Day: What barriers to health equity have you observed in your community?
  • "Good afternoon! I'm Kris from IndyHumane in Indianapolis, IN. We are seeing a large number of clients unable to access vet care due to income limitations as well as a general lack of veterinary professionals in the area." -  Kris Holland
  • "Homeless have no resources when a pet is injured or ill.  We pay hospitals at time of service." - Genevieve Frederick 
  • "Lauren from House Rabbit Network in MA! Knowledgeable bunny vets (exotic animals) is SO hard to find, even in the Northeast. There are not enough well-trained bunny vets - or vets who are even able to treat bunnies. Not to mention the unexpected exotic vet prices. You can purchase a bunny at the many local farm fairs for $20 - but be completely caught off guard with the spay/neuter bills (could be anywhere from $600-$1,000 for a bunny in MA!) That's why we are opening our own low cost spay and neuter cliic for bunnies!" - Lauren Swank
  • "Yes! As someone who has had "exotic" pets, such as reptiles it is so hard to find a vet that can do these specialties." - Shonyae Johnson
  • "IndyHumane is fortunate to offer a low-cost spay/neuter and vaccine clinic with a full team of veterinary professionals. We offer a Pet Resource Center that assists our community with obtaining the care they need for their pets through our offices." - Kelly Sheehan
  • "San Diego Last Chance Ranch from San Diego CA. We don't have any plans for Valentine's day so far. But finding your perfect match sounds cute!" - Kris Holland
  • "As part of Genesee County Animal Control, Flint, MI se see a high poverty rate and people are unable to get their animals to the vets (cost and transportation) as well as inability to purchase pet food." - Elaine Edington
  • "Phase 2 of Sol Dog Lodge and Training Center is a Vet Clinic. We will offer low-cost vet and wellness services to the public as well as no-cost services to those who can't afford them. We hope to have the vet services up and running next year." - Michael Bricker 
  • "We are having a free adoptions promotion if you purchase $14 from our supply store" - Mary Flores
  • "Transportation is a HUGE one! Sometimes the ability to travel to and from is difficult for a lot of people." - Shonyae Johnson
  • "Assumptions!" - Emily Wood
  • "Transportation" - Valerie Moser
  • "Transportation and lack of affordable veterinary options" - Michelle Pease
  • "Affordability" - Kristen Petrie
  • "High cost of vet care." - Anna Andersen
  • "Transportation, food deserts/food insecurity, ownership costs." - Ryan Hughes
  • "Costs of care" - Suman Kamath
  • "Costs of medical bills for animal check-ups, etc." - Ryan Stass
  • "Transportation" - Jan Steele
  • "Housing" - Shelley Joaquin
  • "Accessibility" - Tori Tanner
  • "Inclusivity measures-language for example" - Suman Kamath
  • "For us we have a huge problem with housing - we live in a large military area that has a lot of bans" - Alysia Martinez
  • "Stigma towards cats and feral cats as well" - Marissa Veal
  • "Transportation, vet care!" - Kathy Johnson
  • "Cost is a huge barrier!" - Mary Flores
  • "Re-housing older dogs. Still trying to find their niche in re-homing efforts." - Ryan Stass
  • "Language" - Emily Wood
  • "Checking IDs" - Emily Wood
  • "Affordability and lack of emergency/non 9-5pm veterinary options" - Kaitlyn Truong
  • "Transportation for both people & pets, and also, we have a very long mental health care waitlist across the community for people (which ties into the pet aspect as well.)" - Amanda Coburn
    
    
• National Updates
  •  TNR Certification Workshop The Community Cats Podcast and Neighborhood Cats and this Saturday. 🙂 
    https://www.communitycatspodcast.com/events/tnr-certification-workshop-presented-by-neighborhood-cats-mar-2025/
  • House Rabbit Network! https://www.rabbitnetwork.org/
  • Humane Canada would love to see you at our brand new, first One Health/One Welfare conference bridging Animal, Human and Environmental health and well-being.  We will be in Ottawa, Ontario (our nation's capital) November 25 & 26 of this year.  You can learn more here: https://reg.eventmobi.com/OneHealthOneWelfare 
    As well, the call for abstracts is now open and we would love to see some of you as presenters.  Submit now here: https://sessionize.com/2025-onehealthonewelfare-conference
  • If you're a United States organization that takes in animals for the purposes of finding them a new home, we're hoping you'll fill out our National Foster Survey so we can learn about what's happening with foster programs.  All orgs who complete the survey will be entered into a chance to win one of ten $500 grants.  Whether or not your organization has a foster program, we want to hear from you. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/F7NWWP5
  • 2025 Online Instructor Led Course enrollment starts 2/28 - courses begin the week of March 31, 2025
    Looking to implement a new program, learn more about a specific subject and create positive change for pets and people in your community? Maddie's Fund® Online Instructor-Led Courses provide an interactive educational opportunity for those who are looking to benefit from the wisdom of established innovative programs. They're the catalyst you need to take your programs and learning to the next level! All courses are free #ThanksToMaddie!
    https://university.maddiesfund.org/online-instructor-led-courses
  • Maddie's Fund Monthly Giveaways!  Enter here for a chance to win CA$H: 
    Open to all who are watching live or on-demand! Be sure to enter each week you attend!
     https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-feb25-giveaway.htm
  • Maddie's Pet Forum Monthly Giveaway: Maddie's Fund® is giving away a $3,000 grant each month to one lucky Maddie's® Pet Forum member. You'll automatically be entered to win each month when you start a new discussion, reply to a new post. More info:  https://maddies.fund/mpfmonthlygiveaway

  • In celebration of Maddie's Fund 30th anniversary, Maddie's Fund and Cuddly have partnered to provide $1,000 in prizes monthly, for engaging on a special anniversary-related post on Maddie's Pet Forum. This January, simply comment on this thread telling us about your goals for 2025 and you'll be entered to win a $1,000 Cuddly prize pack: https://forum.maddiesfund.org/30yearsgiveaway

• Presentation: Designing Promising Systems to Support People and Pets 
  • • Guest Speaker:
      • @rachel williams, Board Member, Spay Neuter Network
    • Related Links:
      • Spay Neuter Network Impact Report: https://spayneuternet.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2023-AR-web-final.pdf
      • Veterinary Care Accessibility Score Map: https://www.accesstovetcare.org/vcas-map
      • Integrating Social Care into the Delivery of Health Care - NCBI Bookshelf: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK552597/
      • Racism is a Public Health Crisis: Now That We See, What Can We Do? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGd1XcickoU
      • 2024 Mid-Year Report - Shelter Animals Count: https://www.shelteranimalscount.org/2024-mid-year-report
      • CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index (CDC/ATSDR SVI): https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/placeandhealth/svi/index.html
      • Radical Possibilities: Designing Promising Systems to Support People and Pets: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1xW5EsA2XBbKVj94yE17XLHSkRanf3T7-lfIs3yqvWb4/mobilepresent?slide=id.g2fa4770efc7_0_1690
      • California for All Animals News Stories: https://www.californiaforallanimals.com/news-stories/promisings-systems-to-support-people-and-pets-rachel-rae-williams-cal4all-call-11-19-2024/

      • Principles of Trustworthiness Toolkit Project: https://www.aamchealthjustice.org/our-work/trustworthiness/project

• Highlights from the Chat
  • "Yes! If a person loses their home, so does a pet! If a person needs medical care due to the pollution, so does their pet!" - Shonyae Johnson
  • "We would be free if we could move through the world knowing we have the help we need when we need it" - Stef Mates
  • "Yes!!  Rabies vaccines, air quality too awareness leads to healthy communities. Knowing can be preventative. Animal health impacts us all- H5N1 is another example. Our behavior and the manner in which we get food, can harm us." - Lisa Pearce
  • "I'm focused on equal access to veterinary care and treatment. My nonprofit, Toby's Hope for Canine Cancer Care was started because I kept seeing stories online of people that couldn't afford cancer treatment and thus their dog didn't get the chance to the best possible care for them. Financial burden is a fear that too many people are forced to overcome." - Suman Kamath
  • "I adopted a dog with cancer and thankfully had an organization sponsor his care. Otherwise, I as a person working in this space, would not have been able to afford it while also treating his ear infections, heartworm treatment, and skin conditions!" - Shonyae Johnson
  • "Are we trustworthy? We have to hold up the mirror and look at ourselves." - April Williams
  • "Love this!!!" - Michelle Russillo
  • "Do you have a way of getting Vets to help with animal care in the program? How would you go about connecting with the health care folks for the human end?" - Anita Selby
  • "How can we leverage corporations/businesses in the community to help promote and invest in the activities? Is there a model for this already that can be replicated?" - Suman Kamath
  • "I'd love to hear what you think about the balance between creating space for pets in public (like people taking their dogs on the bus), and people with allergies!" - Jory Jolivet
  • "This was SO GOOD." - Jory Jolivet
  • "This was amazing- so much great information!" - Beth Porter
  • "This was a great presentation! Great information and thank you for all of the resources." - Kristen Petrie
  • "Great resource to help get to trust: The Speed of Trust, a book by Stephen Covey" - April Williams 
  • "This is a great network of researchers and practitioners in social care: 2025 National Research Meeting | SIREN" - Sloane Hawes
  • "People deserve to be paid for their time" - Emily Wood
  • "Good question. I changed my veterinarian pool to pull from by just paying them.  I have 6 paid part-time." - Michelle Russillo
  • "Definitely look into grants that may be able to support your programs!" - Shonyae Johnson
  • "Look into grants for TNR." - Kris Holland
  • "It is so great to keep this conversation moving in the right direction! We just published an editorial in AJPH called Don't forget Fido: A Call to Include Pets in Public Health Research and Policy to Support Families and Communities to help get the public health audience involved in our work from that side: https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2024.307879" - Emily Dolan
  • "@Anita I agree that they should help but at least lowering their costs for spay and neuter." - Rhiannon Filley 
  • "Bissell and the Jason Heigle Foundation both have spay/neuter grant opportunities" - Kris Holland
  • "Get with the neighboring vet clinics and meet the staff. See if their org will pay them to be there." - Azalia Boyd
  • "We pay our Vets and RVT folks for their time.  Some will then donate their pay back but that is their prerogative." - Karen Vandersall
  • "Could you explain more how you see an ideal transportation network?" - Augusta Farley
  • "Agreed!  What are other options for transportation?  Do you all hand out bus passes?  How to coordinate Uber/Lyft?" - Rachele Raj
  • "How do you find additional fosters to help people in transition with their animals? We struggle finding fosters for our homeless pets." - Marla Pugh
  • "Look into the volunteers within those services too! You may have volunteers that would like to overlap as fosters 🙂" - Shonyae Johnson
  • "I love how practical your recommendations are and how you're going to the root of the 'problem'" - Nadia Oseguera
  • "The small rescue I volunteer with is very lucky to get discounted vet fees from our wonderful vet partner. The large rescue/shelter I work for has onsite, staff vets." - Jory Jolivet
  • "Give the sponsors opportunities to promote their goodwill - photo ops at shelter or with the pets, they can post these on their social channels to demonstrate they care about the cause" - Chris Fitzgerald
  • "So true. Relationships can lead to sponsoring of S/N adoptions." - Lisa Pearce
  • "As a veterinarian, I would say this is a challenge. Many veterinarians may want to help, but it is not that straightforward. There are a lot of costs that are non-negotiable, including facility, medications, supplies, etc. Then the need for a specialty assistant (vet tech or similar) whic his also not fair to ask them to help without financial compensation. It is difficult to be a vet and volunteer your time, which may be of interest, but there is a lot more cost besides your individual labor...its all the other things needed to support the 'vet'." - Raye Taylor
  • "We are in an area without Uber or Lyft so a lot of assistance with transport is necessary." - Karen Vandersall
  • "I would love to help homeless people as well ... I just don't have the foster resources" - Marla Pugh
  • "Network with friends, and family." - Lisa Pearce
  • "My model is working. All my actions are dictated by the needs of my community. I am the only shelter in my county that is open 7 days a week. I also have the only Food Pantry and Low cost Spay/neuter program. My challenges are expected. We spend more time on resolution than shock factor or judgements. This is how we keep pets in their home." - Glenn Andrews
  • "So many animal services professionals, volunteers, donors, and advocates are really focused on work and conversation that is about the right decision for animals, continuing to fault human individuals for systemic problems. How do we expand this conversation for our colleagues and community members who are deeply embedded in a saviorist view of the work?" - Emily Wood
  • "KC Pet Project may have some stats that could help your org! They established a fund for RTO fees and they may have data on reunification rates." - Stefanie Cornell
  • "@Steve Rohrer - We recently had a listening session where CA shelters talked about their experiences with this! Looks like we need to adjust the privacy settings on the video, but it's available here: https://www.californiaforallanimals.com/get-involved/advisory-council-meeting-recordings/" - Elise Winn
  • "Be free to do what is right!" - Christina Avila
  • "Feeding Pets of the Homeless® is the first and leading national nonprofit providing pet food and emergency veterinary care to pets that belong to people experiencing homelessness." - Genevieve Frederick 
  • "In Toronto, Ontario, companion dogs are permitted on public transit (buses, streetcars and subways) as long as they are leashed or in a carrier with the exception of peak times (rush hour).  Service animals are legally required to be permitted." - Kathy Duncan
  • "The vets in my area charge anywhere between $600-$1200 for spay/neuter and most people cannot afford that. There is only one low-cost option in our entire county." - Rhiannon Filley
  • "That is SO EXPENSIVE!!" - Jory Jolivet
  • "BestyBNB might also be an option, Marla." - Irene Chansawang
  • "Here's a set of info on fosters from Maddie's University: https://university.maddiesfund.org/products/foster-caregiver-training-and-support-collection" - Shonyae Johnson
  • "This is such a challenging barrier! and a key barrier to access to care!" - Raye Taylor
  • "Does your organization supply take home care package (food, litter,etc) for the pet?" - April Williams
  • "We now offer a virtual option for our foster training in addition to the in-person opportunities" - Kris Holland
  • "Reach out to the businesses in your town. Hair and nail salons and barber shops. Also ask your news media to help you to broadcast that you need fosters. Ask a news media person to do pet fostering for you as well. They will be your advocate. Social media is reaching those already following you." - Sharon Fletcher
  • "Great ideas, Rachel Rae." - Sharon Fletcher
  • "Also understanding why people aren't fostering...like surveying the community to learn what barriers (perceived or real) exist for folks" - Nadia Oseguera
  • "That low-cost option is also over an hour away from my town and it's a crazy road to get there." - Rhiannon Filley
  • "That is market rate for private practice and is not the fault of veterinarians. The same is true for dentals and other surgical procedures. Vet costs have increased higher than the rate of inflation nationally and there are many factors contributing to this. Just want to be sure we are not making private vets and clinics "the enemy" in our scenarios." - Jennifer Bennett
  • "We had a huge turnout of folks during the holidays of people taking in fosters just for the 2-3 days that we were closed" - Kris Holland
  • "Also, if you're talking about fosters for owned pets when their people are indisposed (incarcerated, hospital, moving), recruiting in volunteer pools where people self-identify as caring about people, rather than self-identified animal-people could be helpful..." - Emily Wood
  • "Great Presentation! Thank you" - Jo Lunsford
  • "@emily wood - SPARC also has some great resources for messaging/talking about root causes with systems framing. https://www.sparcinsight.org/" - Elise Winn
  • "Yes, to offering different ways/models of fostering, and yes to an end or set amount of time. As a foster, people ask me all the time what kind of options they must foster, they need some flexibility. Not everyone can foster indefinitely." - Amanda Lamberti
  • "Love, love, love what SPARC is doing!!" - Emily Wood
  • "Mic drop!" - Nadia Oseguera
  • "We all gotta do our own work!" - Irene Chansawang
  • "Shelter staff do soo much to engage the public." - Lisa Pearce
  • "Always a treat, Rae. Hope you are well. Thanks." - Chris Fitzgerald
  • "Rachel Rae and I 🥰love🥰 the Library!!!" - Raye Taylor
  • "Thank you, Rachel Rae!!!" - Kris Holland
  • "Thank you for the great session!" - Lisa Pearce
  • "This was such a great talk! Thank you for this much needed perspective." - Nadia Oseguera
  • "Thank you sooo much, this was so great!!" - Jory Jolivet
  • "Thank you, Rae!!" - Heidi Marston
  • "Thank you all so much, so many wonderful resources shared here!" - Brittany Pratt
  • "This was perfect - I want more!" - Emily Wood
  • "Love the thoughtful presentation! Excellent as usual!" - April Williams
  • "Thank you all! Great presentation!" - Kathy Johnson
  • "You are fabulous!" - Jordan Craig

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Sheila Kouhkan
Senior Education Specialist
Maddie's Fund
CA
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Attachment(s)

Designing Promising Systems to Support People and Pets wi...pptx   12.82 MB 1 version

Unanswered question from the chat: 

"Reclaim fees - do you have research or data that shows reducing or eliminating fees improves community health, reunification, etc.? We meet with our city on a regular basis and trying to move forward with limited or no barriers for reclaim and licensing." - @Steve Rohrer

HiI @Steve Rohrer I reference the following resource in reference to fees and fines as a practice.

https://finesandfeesjusticecenter.org.  

Mission: The Fines and Fees Justice Center (FFJC) is catalyzing a movement to eliminate the fines and fees that distort justice. Our goal is to create a justice system that treats individuals fairly, ensures public safety and community prosperity, and is funded equitably. We work together with affected communities and justice system stakeholders to eliminate fees in the justice system, ensure that fines are equitably imposed and enforced, and end abusive collection practices.

Cheers!

Additional Resources

Canada CoCreating a National Strategy https://volunteerstrategy.ca

Playbook: https://volunteerstrategy.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/National-Action-Strategy-Roadmap_EN_.pdf

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ttps://finesandfeesjusticecenter.org/about-fines-fees-justice-center/

Mission: The Fines and Fees Justice Center (FFJC) is catalyzing a movement to eliminate the fines and fees that distort justice. Our goal is to create a justice system that treats individuals fairly, ensures public safety and community prosperity, and is funded equitably. We work together with affected communities and justice system stakeholders to eliminate fees in the justice system, ensure that fines are equitably imposed and enforced, and end abusive collection practices.