DAVID DUFFIELD - PAWS Chicago

The Life-Saving Impact of
Shelter Medicine
By Alexis Fasseas
Shelter Medicine
Article Guide
12 Life-Saving Impact of
Shelter Medicine
14 Groundbreaking Work
for the Future of Shelter
Medicine
14 Training Veterinary
Leaders
18 Humane Shelter
Medicine Research
21 Inspiring the Future
Generation of Veterinary
Medicine
22 Putting Shelter Medicine
into Practice
PAWS Chicago’s Rescue & Recovery Center is the
first stop for all PAWS dogs and cats.
Large suites with soft bedding, toys, discreet airflow and piped in
classical music help homeless pets relax and prevent the spread
of disease. An expert shelter medicine veterinary team examines
each pet utilizing a case management approach, diagnosing and
establishing a protocol based on the needs of each individual animal.
Puppies and kittens enjoy the love and socialization of foster homes
until they are able to receive their second vaccination. So do pets with
injuries or illnesses that will require a longer recovery time.
Opposite page: A mama and her kittens await their
fate in a traditional shelter. This page: Lurleen and
Flanders (above left) and Edward (above) in suites
at PAWS Chicago’s Rescue & Recovery Center.
Large rooms filled with small, sterile cages, echoing cries and whimpers and loud barking. People with
clipboards walking by, keeping lists of who will live to see another day and whose life will be extinguished.
There is method to the madness. A single sneeze, a stuffed nose, a throaty cough, teary eyes, loose stool:
all calculated offenses for a death sentence. But mere proximity counts, too. The offending cat or dog will
be killed, and so will the cats or dogs in cages immediately surrounding the offender. A single incident of
more virulent diseases warrants a culling of the entire population. Hundreds of dead, furry bodies pile in
refrigerators, awaiting transport to a large incinerator – in Chicago, it’s located on Goose Island. Ash in
the air is a mixture of industry and the remains of thousands of dead cats and dogs.
This is herd management. It’s common practice at large open-door humane societies.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
The old and out-dated model of
running private shelters as a revolving
door of unlimited intake and frequent
death is being supplanted by the No
Kill movement and the burgeoning
field of shelter medicine. While No Kill
shelters have always been dedicated
to the life of each individual pet in
their care, shelter veterinary protocols
historically mimicked private veterinary
practices. But the David Duffield family’s
foundation Maddie’s Fund had a vision
for a new approach. (Read more about
the Duffield family, recipient of the first
PAWS Chicago Visionary Award, on
page 26.) Animals living in shelters are
very stressed and exposed to a drastically
different environment than pets living in
a home; treatment needs to be customized
to handle these diverging medical needs.
Additionally, veterinary medicine staff
need to be trained for these specific shelter
circumstances to optimize the health and
management of a large population of
animals and ensure the best care for each
individual pet.
In 2001, Maddie’s Fund established
the nation’s first comprehensive shelter
medicine program at UC Davis, resulting
in the first shelter medicine residency
program and the nation’s first shelter
medicine website. To date, Maddie’s
Fund has funded grants at nine colleges
of veterinary medicine, including
Purdue University, University of Florida
and Cornell University. Just this year
shelter medicine has been accepted as
a recognized specialty by the American
Board of Veterinary Practitioners and
the guidelines for board certification are
currently being developed.
In 2008, Purdue University School of
Veterinary Medicine collaborated with
PAWS Chicago and received a Maddie’s
Shelter Medicine grant. Maddie’s Fund
also supports PAWS Chicago’s Shelter
Medicine program with equipment and
veterinary staffing expenses. As a result,
PAWS Chicago became one of the first
animal welfare organizations in the
Midwest to integrate shelter medicine
into its operations and is a leading shelter
in innovative best practices. Additionally,
leading scientific studies on shelter
medicine are being performed by Purdue
at PAWS Chicago today. This research will
transform shelter medicine of tomorrow.
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