What does working or volunteering in an animal shelter mean to you ? « I want to bring joy and happiness to the life of those abandoned pets ». « As a life-long pet lover, I feel I’m expressing that in the best way possible by helping saving lives ». « I cannot believe how rewarded I feel each time a lost soul jailed in these shelters is released to a new home. » Those are real testimonials you can find over the world wide web, and I think they tell it all. We join because we want to help. We join because we want to make a difference by providing those pets all the love and care they deserve. Isn’t it an an idealistic vision ? Maybe, but we definitely need this to face the harsh reality.
There is unfortunately another side of the coin, the side we veterinarian often think of first. Shelters are predisposed environments for infectious diseases outbreaks. Not a day goes by without me seeing headlines on social media about an outbreak of whatever pathogen in an animal shelter.
And here is something I often hear: « Ok, but where does all of this connect? This is veterinary stuff, what role could we play? ». Well, certainly one of the most important. Especially if you participate in your shelter sanitation plan.
This is what we discussed during the last webinar we organized for our shelter partners. You’ll find below the recorded video of this session, as well as the e-book we wrote for the occasion, summarizing the 10 essential points you need to know when it comes to sanitation in animal shelters.
DR. EMMANUEL FONTAINE 