Doctors are helping displaced folks and their furry friends

Delguan Milligan holds his Chihuahua mix, Precious, as Dr. John Teeter gives it a check-up. // Photo by Beth Lipoff

Losing your home or living on the streets comes with many stresses—where to sleep, how to feed your family—but an often-forgotten one is what happens to your pets. A new group is offering free veterinary care in hopes of allowing vulnerably-housed people to keep their animals.

Community Veterinary Outreach is Canadian, but Dr. Lara Plass, president of Community Veterinary Outreach USA, had heard about their work and decided to start a sister organization here. Their February clinic was the third the group has conducted since it started up in Kansas City last year.

“You can see the effect when you meet the people. They’re so happy to get anything for their pets for free. These people have nothing except for their pets, and they just want to take care of them and they’re not always able to do that,” Plass says.

People who came to the clinic at Hope Faith Ministries first had to answer some screening questions to make sure they were eligible. Plass and Dr. Daniel Rueb from Southside Pet Hospital in Olathe and Dr. John Teeter from Nall Hills Animal Hospital in Overland Park were all on hand to give check-ups, trim nails, treat minor problems, and administer vaccinations—all for free.

Kansas State University’s mobile surgical unit was also there if anyone needed to spay or neuter an animal.

Dr. Daniel Rueb examines Maggie, a Yorki-poo, at Community Veterinary Outreach’s February clinic. // Photo by Beth Lipoff

The people who come to the CVO clinics aren’t necessarily living on the street but maybe in transitional housing or living in a homeless or domestic violence shelter. With budgets stretched tight, they often don’t have the money to spare to pay for what their animals need.

Giving up their pets, though, has a huge emotional toll. Kristie Meinhardt still tears up when she recalls the dog she had to give up to her niece when she and her husband, Jeffrey, became homeless. It took them years to get back on their feet and into transitional housing, and by that time, her niece wanted to keep the dog.

“We don’t have children,” she says, but dogs have filled that spot in their lives.

Now, she and her husband have yorkie-poo named Maggie.

For Christine Flores, Jordan, her pit bull, is a source of emotional stability for her 16-year-old son, Colt Kloiber, after family circumstances forced them to live in a few different shelters, ending up at Rose Brooks Center.

“He’s there for Colt—one consistent thing in his life,” she says.

Many shelters don’t allow animals, though Rose Brooks does and has facilities to provide some of the care the animals need.

Delguan Milligan had been finding ways to trek up to St. Joseph to get to a clinic that offered half-price vaccinations for his Chihuahua mix, Precious. He was relieved to be able to bring her to the CVO clinic instead.

Although the animals did need a few treatments, overall, the vets found them to be very happy and healthy.

“A lot of the clients I’ve seen here take better care of their pets than some of the clients we see,” Rueb says.

To help owners continue to take care of their animals, CVO sent each one away with a bag containing food, flea collars, preventative heartworm medication, and treats. They even had pet-appropriate toothbrushes for anyone who needed one.

Dr. John Teeter examines Jinx as the cat’s owner, Richard Doyle, watches. Doyle, who has been homeless in the past, is now the facilities supervisor for Hope Faith Ministries. // Photo by Beth Lipoff

Those who are vulnerably housed can also have difficulty paying for their own health needs, and many are uninsured. When CVO holds a clinic for the animals, they also provide human health care services. This clinic featured STI testing from Thrive Health Connection, dental screening from Dr. Matt Scott, and domestic violence counseling, courtesy of Rose Brooks.

Anyone needing additional services can visit Hope Faith Ministries’ onsite clinic for further treatment.

Four of the six pet owners who came to the February clinic chose to use one or more of the human health services.

Plass has been working with the Kansas City police to help spread the word about upcoming clinics. She hopes to start having monthly clinics this summer and wants to offer clinics in a few different locations around the metro. Eventually, she’d like to have events as far afield at Springfield, Mo.

“We’ll see how big of a scope we can eventually handle,” Plass says.

Community Veterinary Outreach has suspended all programming until at least June 30. For more information about programming or how to support efforts visit vetoutreach.org.