The Rise in Community Cats: Why It Takes a Village

Across the nation, the number of community cats has been rising. Several factors have contributed to this increase, including a halt in spay/neuter surgeries during COVID, a shortage of veterinarians, and financial pressures that make pet care more challenging for many people. Shelters and rescue groups are stretched thin, doing their best to help but often unable to keep up with the growing demand. That’s why every effort from community members is invaluable—and why stories like Blackie’s are so important.

Blackie Finds a Guardian Family

This story began when a local family spotted Blackie and her six kittens hiding in the bushes near their home. Although Blackie was a feral cat, they felt compelled to help her and her kittens. As they explained: “Although they are not our pets, we felt a moral obligation to care for them as responsible individuals who value animal welfare.”

The family’s first goal was to bring Blackie and her kittens somewhere safe, so they carefully guided the little family into their garage. They worked diligently to socialize the kittens, giving them the best chance for adoption, while also respecting Blackie’s preference to stay wild and free.

The Challenges of Community Cat Care

The family knew that Blackie would need to be spayed to prevent future litters, but she wasn’t an easy catch. When the time came to trap her, Blackie resisted—smartly avoiding the trap despite the tastiest treats. After missing her first spay appointment, the family kept trying. With our support, they were able to secure another spot at the clinic, and on October 8, Blackie finally went in for her spay surgery.

Following her procedure, the family kept her in their garage a bit longer to give her time to recover fully. When she was ready, they released Blackie back into their yard, where she now roams, ear-tipped and healthy, marking her as a spayed community cat.

A Happy Future for Blackie’s Kittens

But the family’s efforts didn’t stop there. They worked tirelessly to find homes for each of Blackie’s six kittens. Soon, all the kittens will be coming in for their spay/neuter appointments, ensuring this entire family has a bright, healthy future.

The Power of Community

Blackie’s story is a beautiful reminder that it truly takes a village to care for community cats. With shelters facing unprecedented challenges, community members like this family play an essential role in helping animals in need. By taking in Blackie and her kittens, finding homes, and making sure each cat is spayed or neutered, this family made a lasting impact.  A huge THANK YOU goes out to the family!

On this National Cat Day, let’s celebrate the community members who make a difference and encourage others to help however they can. Whether it’s adopting, fostering, or even helping to trap and transport a community cat for spay/neuter, every action counts.

Thank you to the compassionate individuals who step up for animals in need—and here’s to a future where every cat can live a healthy and happy life.

The post Blackie and Her Kittens—How One Family Stepped Up for Community Cats appeared first on Napa Humane.

Microchipping your pets can significantly increase your chances of being reunited with them. A study published by the Journal of the AVMA revealed that only 22 percent of lost dogs entering shelters were returned to their families.  That percentage rose to more than 52 percent when a dog was microchipped. Even better results were achieved in the feline population. Only one in 50 cats in animal shelters was returned to their owners, but when microchipped, nearly two out of five cats were reunited with their families.

Steps Pet Owners Should Take:

• • • If your pet isn’t already microchipped, make an appointment with your veterinarian for microchipping, or stop by Napa Humane’s drop-in clinic, held every Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
    • Register your pet’s chip immediately with the manufacturer, ensuring all your contact information is included.
    • Ask your veterinarian to scan the microchip during your pet’s annual wellness exam every year.
    • Each year on Check the Chip Day (August 15), check your pet’s microchip registration information and update it if it’s incomplete or no longer correct. Set a reminder in your calendar today!

Updating Your Pet’s Microchip Registration:

To update your pet’s registration, you’ll need your pet’s microchip number. If you haven’t already created an account with the manufacturer, you’ll need to do that as well. Ensure all information is correct, especially your phone number(s) and address.

While there are many databases that allow you to register your pet’s microchip, the one that truly counts—the one animal shelters and veterinarians will search—is the database maintained by the manufacturer of your pet’s microchip. You can quickly search the registries of most microchip manufacturers using this universal lookup tool.

Microchipping your pet and keeping their microchip up to date is a vital step to ensure your pet will be reunited with you should they go missing!

The post Why Microchipping Matters appeared first on Napa Humane.

Today, the Napa Humane Clinic is staffed by licensed veterinarians and skilled, professional veterinary support staff.  Between 2021 – 2023 we spayed/neutered over 13,000 pets, microchipped over 4,000 animals, and provided affordable vaccinations to over 11,000 companion animals in order to keep our pet population healthy and safe.

Napa Humane has been part of the community for over 50 years.  Below is a brief timeline of our history:

• • 1973 – Founded
  • 1990- Acquired Spay/Neuter Clinic
  • 2001 – Shelter razed, forcing a re-examination of our goals, programs, and strategies
  • 2002 – Shift to prevention-focused efforts, turning our focus to bigger-picture solutions that help keep pets out of shelters in the first place
  • 2023 – Celebrated 50 Years

Our belief

We believe that the answer to the problem of homeless, abandoned, and neglected companion animals lies in changing attitudes and practices that lead to irresponsible pet ownership. Our programs and services are designed to address the needs of companion animals – but also to provide support, education, and assistance for the people who care for and about them. Because the humane treatment of companion animals is such an important indicator of healthy communities, we’ve grown to consider Napa Humane a community service organization.

Our Impact

Since 2002, when we refocused our efforts on prevention, we have seen a steady decrease in the number of companion animals surrendered at the Napa County Animal Shelter.  We are confident that our strategic direction and mission will continue to drive those numbers even lower.

Our Programs

Today, our programs have grown beyond being the only low cost spay/neuter clinic in Napa County.  Our work includes the following:

• • Weekly drop in affordable vaccination/microchip clinic

• • Spay/Neuter services for Community Cats (Learn More HERE)

• • Humane Education, including Napa County classrooms presentations, free subscriptions to Kind News and free community education events hosted at the Napa Humane Education Center.

• • Pet Education Center & Dog Training Classes, available in both English and Spanish.

• • Pet Behavior Help and Support

• • Community Wellness Clinics dedicated to assisting Napa County’s underserved populations, these clinics address critical barriers to accessing veterinary care, including socioeconomic constraints and language barriers.

• • The Napa County Animal Shelter Medicine program provides comprehensive medical care to animals in care of the Napa County Animal Shelter.  This program helps reduce animal stress, shorten shelter stays and assists NCAS in managing their cost of care.

• • The Services for Unhoused program plays a crucial role in promoting responsible pet care and strengthening the human-animal bond. By facilitating essential veterinary care, grooming, and training services to the pets of the unhoused, we help maintain the health and well-being of both animals and their owners.

Join us in advocating for a more humane and compassionate Napa County, strengthening human-animal bonds to enhance the quality of life for both our animals and our community.  Napa Humane is supported 100% by donations, grants, and fundraising events. We do not receive money from national animal organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States or the ASPCA. We do not receive government funds. We could not do the life saving work we do without the generous support of our community.

The post Celebrating a Milestone in Napa Humane History! appeared first on Napa Humane.

Understanding Kitten Season

Kitten season typically spans from early spring through late fall. While kittens are undeniably adorable, this period poses significant challenges:

• Overpopulation: A sudden increase in the cat population can lead to overcrowded shelters/rescue groups/foster homes.
• Resource Demand: The need for food, medical care, and space skyrockets.
• Health Risks: Young kittens are highly susceptible to diseases and require intensive care.
• Adoption Urgency: There’s a pressing need to find loving homes for the influx of kittens.

The Power of Prevention: Spay and Neuter

At Napa Humane, we believe that prevention is the most effective strategy to manage and mitigate the challenges of kitten season.

Here is why Spay and Neuter Matters:

1. Reducing Overpopulation

By spaying and neutering community cats, we prevent the birth of countless kittens that would otherwise add to the seasonal surge. Each surgery performed means fewer kittens that will require shelter, food, and medical care.

2. Enhancing Community Health

Spaying and neutering not only helps control the population but also contributes to the overall health and well-being of community cats. These procedures reduce the risk of certain diseases and prevent behaviors associated with mating, such as fighting and roaming.

3. Building a Compassionate Community

Our efforts are not just about numbers; they’re about fostering a compassionate community. By reducing the number of homeless cats, we lessen the strain on our shelter and enhance the quality of life for both the animals and our neighbors.

How You Can Help

The work we do would not be possible without community support. Here’s how you can get involved:

• Donate: Your contributions help us continue providing these vital services and expand our reach.
• Advocate: Spread the word about the importance of spaying and neutering pets.
• Foster or Adopt: Open your home to a cat or kitten in need.  There are an abundance of cats and kittens in need of a foster or forever home.  Be sure to reach out to one of our local rescue partners if you are interested in fostering or adopting!

Click here for more information on our spay and neuter service.  If you would like to learn how you can support our mission, click here.  You can help us continue to make a difference, one spay or neuter at a time.

The post Making a Difference This Kitten Season appeared first on Napa Humane.

Our PAWS program is a partnership with Napa County Health and Human Services, Abode (The South Napa Shelter) and Napa Humane to provide services for the pets of the unhoused. Napa Humane’s Case Manager works with Abode clients to connect them with necessary pet-related services – such as veterinary care, grooming, and Napa Humane’s own spay/neuter, vaccination and training programs. We refer pets with non-preventative medical needs to another vet in town. Napa Humane’s Friday Vaccine Clinic has helped resident pets caught up on vaccines and microchipped.

We are particularly grateful to have met one of the Abode dogs when we did. When she came in for her spay and we began operating, we discovered she had a pyometra – a serious and life-threatening infection of the uterus, for which the only cure is a spay. This spay surgery allowed us to save this sweet dog’s life. Through our PAWS program, we have scheduled 10 more dogs and cats for spays/neuters at our Clinic over the next month.

The savings for our clients using our preventative services, instead of a full-service veterinarian, are immense. For example, the partner vet that we have negotiated a discount with still charged $80 for a vaccine we offer for $15. We are glad that your donations and support help individuals save money, and redirect their funds in ways that address the other significant financial challenges one may be facing.

While Napa Humane staff spends most of our time with clients at Abode, we also recently added office hours at the North Napa Shelter (The Motel 6) and the Valley Lodge Apartments, where permanent housing has been made available to formerly unhoused people. Providing permanent housing at these two locations has allowed people with families and pets to come in off the streets together – and stay together. Demand is high for veterinary services at these two new locations and our staff is working hard to connect residents with the services their pets need.

Meanwhile, Napa Humane’s Shelter Medicine program continues to improve life for our local animals by providing veterinary rounds at the Napa County Animal Shelter (NCAS). Dr. Vance has already completed 138 rounds this year, conducting countless labs and bloodwork, setting up a ringworm quarantine, dispensing prescriptions, performing necropsies, and working on protocols and directives.

Dr. Vance will be making more frequent visits to NCAS once kitten season begins, as there will be a huge spike in feline residents. We’ll continue to neuter male cats on these days, to help shorten their length of stay in the shelter. Keeping stays short is critically important for NCAS. The longer the stay per animal, the higher the costs to the shelter. The longer an animal is confined, the greater the demand for sufficient space, interaction and environmental enrichment to prevent confinement-related stress and behavioral disorders. Quicker access to veterinary care also reduces a pet’s length of stay; the faster we can clear them from medical concerns, the faster they can head out with their adoptive family.

We’ll end with this photo of Napa Humane’s Dr. Vance and an NCAS assistant, examining a cat that was brought in with a huge abscess on his head. Dr. Vance was able to treat the abscess, neuter the cat, and get him out of the shelter to start living his best life.

Thank you for supporting Napa Humane, and empowering us to do this important work!

And thank you, Dr. Vance for being an amazing Veterinarian! 

If you’d like to make a donation to help with our Shelter Medicine or PAWS programs, please click here.

The post Saving Lives and Opening Doors appeared first on Napa Humane.

In the past, we were told that Napa Humane’s focused operations wouldn’t be able to offer interns varied enough experiences. But recently, our Program Director, Lisa Alexander, met with Carrington College’s Clinical Coordinator of Veterinary Technology Program, and reviewed the Clinical Rotation task list. We determined that in fact, we can offer interns the opportunity to use many of the required skills and activities under the supervision of our team. Carrington promised that the few activities Napa Humane can’t offer (such as reading radiographs) would be offered to these interns during their regular school hours, so they would not miss out on necessary training by coming to work with us.

One of our staff RVTs recently left to take her dream job as an instructor at Carrington College, helping mentor future RVTs every day. Though her departure left us shorthanded, we are thrilled to have found a way to not only alleviate that issue, and also help train future RVTs who are so sorely needed around the country.

It’s an innovative solution that helps with both our present and our future needs!

The post Training the Next Generation of RVTs appeared first on Napa Humane.

Clinic Staffing

We have hired a new Clinic Assistant Manager, Hayley, who comes to us with management and animal welfare experience. I am beyond excited to add this depth to the Clinic team, and have been busy re-arranging the Clinic office furniture and loading her computer so we will be all set to welcome her on Tuesday the 27th. 

We also have a new Vet Assistant/Client Services Coordinator starting Monday. Esai will be filling the shoes of Hilda, who is starting Registered Veterinary Technician school in March. We wish her well and hope that she re-joins us once she is certified! One of our former full-time RVTs is helping out while we continue our RVT search. Happily, we are in talks with a great RVT candidate and hope to offer her a position soon.

Internships

Two new interns from New Tech High School joined us this month, spending 4-5 hours each week working and learning with our staff. We have also laid all the plans needed to welcome a new intern in March, in partnership with Moving Forward Towards Independence. We have worked with Moving Forward quite a bit in the past to provide Paid Internship Programs, which allows them to pay adults with developmental disabilities in order for them to gain work experience. Our Moving Forward intern will be joining us for 16 hours a week for 6 months. She comes to us with a passion for animal welfare and some experience in the field already. 

Shelter Support with Napa County Animal Shelter

In addition to the general veterinary rounds, disease control, feline neuters and education that we provide to the Animal Shelter staff at each visit, we have been able to jump to the rescue in some interesting cases this month. The Shelter recently rescued 38 chihuahuas from a single home. When the vet that the Shelter usually contracts with said that they do not provide health certificates for animals, we were able to step in and quickly provide exams and health certificates for 20 of the dogs, so they could be transported to an out-of-state shelter. 

Believe it or not, there are some parts of the country where chihuahuas are rare, and enterprising California shelters like ours will often transport these dogs to the states where they are coveted and very quickly adopted. We also were able to see a few of these dogs for their neuter surgeries, so they could be put up for adoption locally. I am happy to report that besides needing some serious socialization, they were in fairly decent shape.

Additional Shelter Support

Our Humane Education Manager, Alyssa, provided an hour-long training for employees of Abode (the shelter for unhoused humans), the County and some of the team at the Animal Shelter. She spoke about behavior, the use of muzzles, general safety and addressed the staff’s questions about safety and how to handle the frequently recurring situations that arise with some of the larger canine residents at Abode. Alyssa has also provided a few one-on-one sessions with a couple of the Adobe residents, who needed assistance with their dogs’ behavior so they could fit in and co-exist peacefully with the other shelter residents.

Through our new PAWS Program for the Pets of the Unhoused, we have provided 3 spay/neuter surgeries for this population in the past week. Our case manager holds office hours at Abode each week so we can meet with the residents and discuss their needs. Most of the visits are for food, warm pet clothing and general veterinary care. The County has already asked us to expand this program to include serving the residents at the new Motel 6 shelter, and another Abode-related housing complex on Coombs. We are excited to make this work.

Dog Training

Napa Humane’s dog training courses and workshops are in full swing, with Alyssa teaching 5 classes on Sundays, and 2 per night Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We held three special one-time workshops in February, and finished our first “Tricks ‘n’ Treats” and “Intro to Dog Sports” classes this month – and the dogs did awesome! Clients have requested that these be offered regularly, and we hope to be able to oblige.  Check out all of our dog training classes here!

Other Clinic Updates

In beautification news, we have added new gravel to the Clinic parking lot, as the non-asphalt portion was quite bare and incredibly muddy during times of rain. Van Winden’s Landscaping was kind enough to discount and deliver the product. We also owe a special shoutout to Salvador from Taqueria el Rey (a delicious food truck parked near the Clinic), who saw the pile of gravel, recruited a friend to help, and came to our rescue – spreading the truckload out for us. Our Clinic Manager’s husband generously pressure washed the outside of the Clinic, and everything is looking so much better. Next up: a few beautification projects on the inside of the Clinic, including some caulking and a painting refresh.

2024 Wellness Clinics

Our Wellness Clinic program aims to remove the language and financial barriers that can often stand in the way of pets receiving care. Due to a lack of veterinary volunteers and a few other extenuating circumstances, we unfortunately had to cancel our planned February wellness clinic. Even so, we were able to provide significant essential services to the targeted population. So far, we have seen 22 pets for spay/neuter at our clinic and have provided free microchips, vaccines, flea meds and nail trims to those clients. We have an additional 23 pets scheduled for surgery next week. Being able to reach 45 pets for spay/neuter and other life saving services is huge, and has made a real difference in supporting this pet population.

Spay/Neuter and Vaccination/Microchip Clinic

In addition to all of the above, we are methodically working our way through a fully booked spay/neuter calendar. The Clinic has performed 288 spay/neuter surgeries in just 17 surgery days so far this month (at the time this was written) – an average of 17 surgeries EACH DAY. At the four Friday microchipping and vaccination clinics this month, we also treated 259 pets – more than 64 animals per day, on average. Our incredible Clinic team is running like a well-oiled machine, saving lives and improving others every day.

I leave you with this photo of Harry, a community cat who was neutered yesterday under our Feral Cat Package, and who is already well on the way to living his best life.

Lisa Alexander

The post A Month in the Life of Napa Humane appeared first on Napa Humane.

These three new initiatives weren’t impulsive moves – each program draws on years of careful consideration and strategic planning by Napa Humane’s Board of Directors and staff. Napa Humane has performed virtually all the spay/neuter surgeries for adoptable dogs, cats and rabbits at the Napa County Animal Shelter for decades. A local veterinary hospital provides most of the shelter’s other veterinary care, but in 2023, Napa Humane stepped up to provide the animals with regular veterinary attention. Under our new Shelter Medicine program, we send a veterinarian to the shelter at least bi-weekly to examine the animals NCAS would like a medical opinion on. These exams may include treating skin issues, ear or eye infections, performing senior pet blood panels, and providing veterinary support and guidance to enhance pet care at the shelter overall.

Behavioral issues are, across the board, the most common reason for euthanizing sheltered dogs, and some estimates suggest that 1.5 million dogs in U.S. shelters are put down each year.  In 2023, Napa Humane took a proactive approach to this tragic situation by launching Pet Ed: a whole slate of training and socialization classes for puppies and adolescent dogs. These early education classes aim to help young dogs and their people build healthy behaviors right from the start, and develop deeper, more rewarding relationships that will stand the test of time.  We also began offering refresher courses for adult dogs, with specialized classes to focus on life essentials like socialization and coming when called. The response has been terrific, and we look forward to a new season of classes in 2024!

Our third new program of 2023 aims to help some of our most vulnerable local animals: pets of Napa County’s unhoused. Funded by a special grant awarded to Napa County Housing & Homeless Services, this new program provides care support to clients of Napa’s adult emergency shelter and Day Center service program (both run by the non-profit Abode Services). Napa County Housing & Homeless Services asked Napa Humane to manage this program, and we jumped at the opportunity. We hired a part-time Case Manager to work with Abode clients who have pets, helping ensure the animals have access to veterinary care, vaccines, microchipping, spay/neuter, grooming, supplies and training – all with the goal of keeping those beloved pets healthy and with their people. Our furry family members’ unconditional love and company play such an important role in our well-being. We look forward to helping strengthen that bond and the emotional support it provides to the unhoused in our community.

We had more than three big headlines last year, though. Napa Humane’s veterinary scholarship dreams also came to life, thanks to a partnership with Napa Valley Community Foundation. The Dr. Rick Bachman Memorial Veterinary Medicine Scholarship Fund is now live, and accepting applications from current or former residents of Napa County, Solano County, or Lake County. We hope this scholarship empowers many more animal lovers to pursue their veterinary dreams, and help address the ever-worsening vet shortage.

No year-in-review piece would be complete without some inspiring stats on our preventative efforts. In 2023, our Spay/Neuter Clinic in Napa completed surgery on 4033 animals on 242 surgery days – a stunning average of 20 surgeries per day! Our experienced Clinic team runs like a well-oiled machine, and we are so grateful to have them supporting our community with low-cost spay/neuter, vaccinations, and microchipping. Rising veterinary costs and vet shortages have boosted the demand for our subsidized services so much that our Clinic schedule is usually booked out 4 months in advance. Clearly, we are needed.

As we turn the page to 2024, I’m awe-struck by our Napa County community of animal lovers, and how much we have been able to accomplish together. It is hard to imagine a group of people who loves pets more! On behalf of everyone at Napa Humane, thank you for supporting our efforts to care for all the pets in our community – including and especially the most vulnerable. I am so deeply grateful.

~Wendi Piscia, Executive Director

The post Napa Humane’s Big 3 from 2023 appeared first on Napa Humane.

In 1973, the year Napa Humane was founded, Richard Nixon was the President and a gallon of gas cost $0.39. How times have changed! Back then, dogs were rarely purchased or adopted – usually people just knew someone whose dog had puppies. Dogs often spent most of their lives in the backyard or garage, tied to a tree with only a doghouse for shelter. Not so long ago, obedience training relied on choke chains and punishments to shape behavior. Dogs were expected to be practical, contributing members of the household – a far cry from today’s “fur babies!”

Our relationship with pets has evolved a lot over the years, thanks to a variety of social, cultural, economic, political and even technological changes that have shaped our outlook and values. Modern research has shown us that pets are good for our emotional and physical health. (It’s sure hard to beat their unconditional love and companionship!) The need to walk and entertain a dog often pushes owners to get out of the house, stretch their legs, and connect with nature and other people face to face.

People are much more reluctant to leave their pets home alone now, so our dogs tag along with us – which makes manners and socially appropriate behaviors even more important. More people than ever before are enrolling their puppies in pre-school, where fear-free methods and positive reinforcement have replaced choke chains and physical discipline.

These days, folks are much more willing to spend money on their pets, whether that’s on training, pet outfits, or other animal-themed bling. We also have many more services available to support (and pamper) our pets, like pet health insurance, government-funded dog parks, doggy day care, and pet-friendly travel accommodation. At the same time, veterinary medicine has taken mighty leaps forward, allowing us to raise the standard of care for our pets tremendously.

Napa Humane has been there every step of the way to ensure that all pets have access to wellness, training, and education regardless of one’s income, and we are continuing to strive for purrfection as we head into our next 50 years!

Of course, we aren’t doing this alone. Because you love animals and want the best for them, YOU and people like you have ensured that spay/neuter is accessible and affordable in Napa County – so that puppies and kittens are not born to an uncertain future.

YOU made it possible for Napa Humane to bring affordable dog training classes and puppy socialization to our community, so that pets and their people have the tools they need for success when we take them to parks, work, vacations, and even restaurants with us.

YOU understand that every pet should be able to see a veterinarian for regular check-ups – and certainly during times of illness or injury. As we navigate the current critical veterinary shortage, you might want to support Napa Humane as we fund Veterinary and Registered Veterinary Scholarships that bring more qualified pet caregivers into practice.

Since you know shelter animals and community cats are most vulnerable, you may choose to support Napa Humane so we can continue to provide veterinary rounds at the Napa County Animal Shelter, and spay/neuter services for unowned cats.

For 50 years, Napa Humane has received no government funding. We rely 100% on private grants and YOU to keep Napa a humane place for our beloved pets.

With your help, we can rise to meet the changing needs of Napa Valley’s animals in the next 50 years – and stay one step ahead through smart, preventative programs that make the most of every dollar you entrust to us!

Your donation of $50 ensures 5 pets can get microchipped, making it far easier to reunite them with their family if they are lost.

Your donation of $500 ensures that 4 community cats are spayed/neutered – or that 4 dogs and their people can participate in humane, effective dog training.

Your donation of $5,000 helps pay for veterinary school, so that we have more skilled veterinarians and RVTs available to care for our pets when they need it.

Can you help with a gift today? Every dollar you invest in preventative programs today saves thousands of future dollars dealing with animal suffering that could have been avoided.

You have the power to make a difference!

Together, we make Napa humane.

Wendi Piscia, Executive Director

The post 50 Years: How Times Have Changed appeared first on Napa Humane.

Yoselin Hernandez-Aceves, our Vet Tech Assistant, is a lifelong animal lover who is really stepping up to help with the veterinary shortage – by leaving Napa Humane to attend veterinary school at UC Davis! Learn her story in her own words below.

When did you know you wanted to become a veterinarian? What drew you to the profession?

I think I’ve always known I wanted to work with animals. Growing up, my parents did their best to convince me to get into sports, or maybe dance like the rest of the girls in my class. Even with all the pushing, though, they couldn’t convince me because I would have had to do these activities without my puppy. That dog became my whole world, and I needed to know everything I could about Chihuahuas.

When I was gifted a toy doctor’s set around age 8, I chose to listen to my dog’s heartbeat and vaccinate her so she wouldn’t get the flu like I had. What started with a single-dog household transformed into a home for chickens, ducks, a chinchilla, iguanas, small parrots, bunnies, turtles, and finally a Blue Heeler and his very annoyed sisters. I have never been able to focus on a singular one of the animals that shares a home with me, and I venture into all of their worlds. I love learning about the care they require, their specific diets, their behaviors in captivity and in the wild, and, especially, the best ways to prevent diseases and health complications in their lives. And it all started with a special little Chihuahua named Dora.

What did you enjoy most about working for Napa Humane?

I don’t even know where to start. I really felt like I was welcomed into the veterinary field while working here, and I wouldn’t trade my time with you for anything. The experience I gained may not make me Valedictorian at UC Davis, but it’s reminded me of why I enjoy the field, regardless of the struggles involved. I just wish I’d listened to Lisa earlier and joined the team sooner!

I still remember my first day – there were so many things I had to pick up, but I didn’t feel pressured or looked down on. Instead, I was received with open arms and everybody willing to lend a hand. Everyone there made it so enjoyable to work. The RVTs took time to answer all my questions, even the silly ones, and describe what they were doing with so much knowledge. I’m just left in awe by the love and care they took to explain tasks that weren’t even under my job title.

Working here allowed me to learn so much more about the veterinary field than I thought I would, because being a veterinary assistant was more than wrapping surgery instruments and cleaning kennels.

I’m grateful for the amazing doctors who patiently explained the meticulous work that they do every day. I learned more about animal biology than I had in my college classes! I am definitely most grateful for Dr. Vance who would put up almost on a daily basis with my millions of questions regarding common dog and cat illnesses. And, of course, those at the front desk who welcomed everyone with a smile and extended a hand to those needing resources and information. Walking in every day to an example of someone who was there not for the money, but someone who was there for the good of the animals. Being at the front desk is more like being an advice nurse, really. They don’t just make appointments – they know their field, and they’re able to provide knowledge and resources to everyone who walks through the door.

Of course there was also the major WOO-HOO moment of meeting my puppy, Benito.

What kind of veterinary medicine do you want to practice?

I’ve honestly been working to figure out where I wanted to focus my studies for the last two years at the CCC. I was really set on working with farm animals, like poultry and cattle, but I don’t really know if I could handle large animal health or the food industry regarding those animals. I think my time at the Napa Humane Clinic may have something to do with my response today… but I think I want to focus on companion animals and maybe stick a toe into the world of shelter medicine.

I want to believe there are millions of opportunities in my future that will give me a taste of interesting paths in the field, but at the moment I think I want to focus on exotic animals. Vets who specialize in small critters like my Chinchilla, Luna, or even my Green Cheek Conure, Cocoa, are kind of hard to come by, based on my past experiences. I want to be able to make a difference, even if small, by offering someone else the resources and medicine I needed and found thanks to two wonderful vets in the Napa Valley. Although, I wouldn’t mind spending some time at Napa Humane with a different job title in the future….

The post A Great New Vet in the Making appeared first on Napa Humane.