Staff Burnout, a Mobile Clinic for Rent, and The Veterinary Shortage

Written by Esther Mechler, President & Founder of United Spay Alliance

Interested in hearing the latest about Staff Burnout? The impact of Covid-19 on spay/neuter clinics, or the need for collaboration in dealing with the backlog? How to run small-scale spay/neuter wet labs to train more vets in your area?  Ways to make a mobile spay clinic far more efficient? Or do you want to hear about a fully equipped spay clinic on wheels that is rented out to effective nonprofits in spay/neuter deserts, for just one dollar a month?

Fido Fixers finds qualified partners who agree to provide at least 200 spay and neuter surgeries a month, working four days a week with a dedicated vet. They lease the mobile clinic, directly from Fido Fixers, after signing a one-year agreement for $1 per month. Fido Fixers covers vehicle insurance, repairs, property taxes, and DMV costs directly related to the mobile clinic. If a partner can no longer fulfill its commitment, Fido Fixers will re-locate the mobile clinic to another qualified organization.

You can hear about all this and far more at the United Spay Alliance Online Conference this weekend – February 25 to February 27. Sign up here!

One major focus of this year’s conference is the ongoing veterinary shortage, a reality that has impacted so many of us in this line of work.  We hear of too many clinics and programs complaining of this very problem. Cheri Storms, executive director of Pet Friendly Services and the Indiana state leader for United Spay Alliance, has been holding meetings and gathering data on this very topic, and recently forwarded this letter of interest to us: AVMA Is Urged to Address Veterinarian Shortage – Today’s Veterinary Business. Leaders in the field of companion animal food and health care joined forces to ask the AVMA to address this very issue. Possibly spay/neuter clinics and programs would want to join the chorus.

Cheri’s panel presentation on Sunday (February 27) will feature creative workarounds and solutions to increase spay/neuter capacity. Cheri runs a statewide (population 6.7 million) spay/neuter subsidy voucher program. Drs. Bob Weedon and Tess Peavy will speak about training vets in the latest techniques of high-quality, high-volume spays. Other speakers on the veterinary shortage include Ruth Steinberger, who will discuss sustainability, and Joeseph Henson who will share his thoughts on increasing profit without increasing prices.

We will also hear updates from our friends around the globe! We will touch base with groups in Europe, Mexico and Central America, Japan, and India – what is happening in some of the countries may surprise and delight you! Their true stories are inspirational to us, seeing what is being done with very little money.

There will also be sessions on running a large spay/neuter clinic efficiently, fundraising for nonprofit clinics, and launching a digital marketing campaign.  Also on our list is the introduction to three of our newest state leaders – South Carolina, Ohio, and Wyoming.  Each year we will introduce several of our newest leaders.  As an example of the talent we have been finding we offer this wonderful video produced by Spay Wyoming:  Spay/Neuter Wyoming | Animal Adoption Center | Jackson, Wyoming   It captures the heart of our work – thank you Carrie, and well done!

The overall theme of the conference is public health for pets (and strays) – meaning that the way to a brighter future for all companion animals, and their best hope for a good outcome, is for their numbers to be reduced. This movement has been slowed down by several factors over the past ten years including the denial that a surplus exists, and a pandemic resulting in economic pressures, supply chain issues, and increased homelessness and poverty.

It is up to us to join forces to make spay-neuter a priority again in the animal welfare landscape and to work around the shortages of veterinarians and staff to bolster our capacity.  We welcome you to join us!  Come to the conference and encourage others to sign up.  There is no better way to find out what is happening and to help make things better!

Esther has assisted with the start-up of hundreds of affordable spay and neuter programs and clinics, both fixed-site and mobile throughout the United States. Thanks to the SPAY/USA model and willingness to share and empower other groups, similar programs have started in other countries as well.

For her work, Esther Mechler won the prestigious Geraldine R. Dodge Award for Humane Ethics in Action in 1995, Outstanding Women of Connecticut in 2003, and the Bates College Alumni Community Service Award in 2014.