I have been an animal advocate and worked closely with vets providing care for our furry family all my life. When we moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico, the second largest city in the state, I wrongly believed that 24/7 emergency care was available here (huge billboard said so), and I established with our local vet immediately. To my horror, when our schnauzer/beagle cross, one of our two rescues, started bleeding out post-cancer surgery early on a Saturday morning due to severe allergy to Rimadyl, the vet clinic answering service directed me that I would have to drive to El Paso, TX to get him help. It was a long, terrifying day, but Fergus did survive. I knew I had to make a difference for the pets and their people in our community, indeed, across Southern New Mexico. I founded and action group, Animal Companions of Las Cruces, which quickly grew into a nonprofit to help support our local vets who are short-staffed and to work toward the creation of a 24/7 emergency hospital. Since becoming a nonprofit under the auspices of The Community Foundation of New Mexico just a year ago, we have gained over 90 volunteer members, raised over $70,000 and are on our way to spinning out to our own nonprofit status by the end of the year. There is much to do, but we are dedicated to saving lives, to supporting veterinary care, and to working with our rescues, shelter, and govt agencies. I attach here a photo of our boy Fergus in his surgical t-shirt about a month after the terrible day that began this work. His smile says it all: well again!
#AccesstoCare
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Dr. Dawn Duncan
Founder/Chair
Animal Companions of Las Cruces
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