|
Veterinarios
Internationales Dedicados a Animales Sanos
“Vidas” means
“Lives”
International
Veterinarians Dedicated to Animal Health
|
Our Mission
and Goals
VIDAS is a non-profit
organization made up of veterinarians, veterinary students and
other animal lovers dedicated to improving the lives of animals
and people through veterinary medicine and education.
Our goal is prevention of
animal suffering due to starvation, disease, and other health
problems associated with pet overpopulation, recognizing also
that overpopulation of animals also contributes directly to
human disease.
Toward this goal, we strive to provide safe
sterilization, vaccination and parasite control for the animals
and education for the people about safe animal handling,
zoonotic disease and general animal husbandry and health care.
|
 |
 This is Jaime, a local resident of Playa del Carmen with 2 of his
many beloved pets. History
VIDAS conducted our first clinic in June of 2002. Six
veterinary students and two veterinarians successfully sterilized
100 cats and dogs during 5 days in Playa del Carmen. The severe
need for organized help in the area was recognized by founding
members Cristina Gutierrez, Ruth Parkin, Robyn Gadojsik and Ginny
Gill and with the invaluable help of mentor Dr. Lesli Hick, VIDAS
was born.
We returned to the area in 2003, 2004 and 2005 and have
sterilized nearly 1500 animals in total in Akumal, Bacalar, Coba,
Chemuyil, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, Puerto Morelos and Puerto
Aventuras.
|
This is Jaime’s home and place of business. Really
|
Location
We work in the Yucatan Peninsula,in the state of
Quintana Roo, Mexico; home to some of the most beautiful places on
the continent, and to some of the poorest people.
The people
of these areas love their pets but can scarcely afford food and
medical care for themselves and their own children.
|
Animal
Medical Issues
We see rampant disease, zoonoses, malnutrition, injuries,
parasites, transmissible venereal tumors (TVT), anemia, pyometra,
many animals that come to our clinics are in heat, pregnant or
lactating…
|
This is TVT
|
|
This
severely malnourished dog has puppies to feed
|
Free Animal Health Clinics
Sterilization
Vaccines: Rabies, FELV, DA2PP
Antiparasitics when available
Education for children and pet
owners
Free collars! Many dogs show up with creative (and
quite scary) collars made of rope, wire and twisted up shirt
hangers. Some of these devices are so tight that they must
be surgically removed as they have grown into the animals' skin
|
|
Education
is the Key
VIDAS’ Spanish
speaking volunteers take every opportunity possible to educate
the community.
The children are
often very interested in the animals of the town and are
closely bonded to their pets.
The children are
especially excited about out clinics and are often the ones who
initiate the family's interest in the health of their pets.
We believe that educating the children is the
key to the future health of the animals and the children of
these communities.
|
 |
 |
Community involvement
is part of our strength
We often attract a large
crowd.
We try to be a positive
presence in every community.
We enjoy involving local people in our work as much as
we
are able to.
|
|
Planning
Clinics
We spend most of
the year raising money and collecting supplies for VIDAS clinics
from individuals, hospitals and corporate sponsors.
Planning clinics also requires assistance from
our friends in the US and in Mexico and the cooperation of the
Mexican Government.
|
|
Positively sponsored Animals
|
A
Day in a VIDAS Clinic
Our free sterilization clinics
last anywhere from 2-5 days in a particular location. Then we
move on to the next community.
Demand is so great that we are usually overwhelmed with
patients and must sadly turn a few away.
|
|
|
|
The Patients Arrive
Our patients come to us on rope
leashes, in backpacks, in boxes, on bikes, on carts…
Some wander in off the streets
on their own to see what all the excitement is about.
On slow days we go out and find patients. There is no lack
of animals in need of medical care. There are very few slow days.
|
Check-in and
physical exams
Owners are greeted by a
Spanish speaker who will get the patient’s history, answer
questions and discuss the benefits of sterilization.
We are not there to
force our beliefs on people; owners make their own decisions.
Patients get physical exams and are assigned a
number.
|
Surgical preparation
Premedication is administered.
Some of our healthy young
patients are induced and maintained with IV Telazol.
We have two portable gas
anesthesia machines (recent donations) for sick animals or more
difficult cases.
Most of our spays and many of our neuters get IV fluids
during surgery (many of the females are pregnant, lactating, have
pyometra or are in heat).
|
|
|
|
We have some very long
days…
What generally follows is hours
of wrestling angry cats, getting peed on and treating patients at
a hectic pace in the sweltering, tropical heat of Mexico.
It is very important for volunteers to speak at length
with the coordinator for their clinic about the envirmonmental
conditions that are anticipated. If there are any medical
concerns that might affect your safety during a clinic the
coordinator will need to be made aware of them
|
|
Patient Recovery
Volunteers watch over our
recovering patients.
Patients get vaccines as
needed.
Owners are given home care
instructions, pain medication and/or antibiotics as needed and
antiparasitics when available for their pets.
We try to make sure every dog
goes home with a new well-fitted collar.
When every animal has recovered and returned home, our day
is done.
|
|
VIDAS
Volunteers
|
|
VIDAS Volunteers
are:
Veterinarians, veterinary technicians,
students and concerned community members… working as a team to
improving the lives of pets and owners through animal health care.
|
 Volunteer
Duties:
Spanish speakers are
always needed on clinics. Spanish speakers, including vet students,
will be utilized for: communication, translation, discharge
instructions and education efforts in addition to medical duties.
Vet students and
technicians: During clinics you will assist with physical exams,
pre-medication and induction, surgical prep, anesthesia monitoring,
cleaning instruments, recovery, and assisting the doctors as needed.
Veterinarians primarily
do spay/neuter surgeries all day long but sometimes perform physical
exams and anesthesia induction depending on the needs of the clinic.
Other volunteers assist
with patient check-in and discharge, community outreach, animal
restraint, administration of antiparasitics and post-op recovery.
Throughout the year we forcus efforts on public
awareness, fundraising, and collecting/preparing supplies for
clinics. Our goal is to provide treatment for as many animals as
possible, with as few complications as possible in the few days that
we visit a town.
Important
points for vet students:
VIDAS vet student
volunteers do not generally do surgery.
To maximize our time
and effort in a community, we must use every volunteer to her/his
best ability.
We make every effort to run our clinics in a way
that maintains a positive relationship with local government
officials and veterinarians.
|
Here’s why:
The
difference between a vet student doing a 1-1/2 hour spay and a
veterinarian doing a 30 minute spay is: 3 times as much
anesthetic, 3 times as much IV fluid, more use of gloves, suture,
gauze, and a potential for more blood loss, tissue trauma and
complications. We would work much later into the night which puts
us at risk of having to work in the dark through power outages
(not uncommon) and cuts into our much needed rest, and in the end
we will treat 2/3 fewer animals.
Every year we must turn
animals away for lack of time, supplies and funds. For some of
these sick, needy animals, this may be the difference between life
and death.
|
This dog in Bacalar didn’t make it to our clinic last October.
We will look for him on our next visit
|
We return to these
needy communities year after year.
And…
We are
making a difference
|
|
This is Mamaho. She’s a well-known street dog in Puerto
Morelos. In fact, they say she’s the grandmother of ‘em all.
She produced two litters per year, ~10 pups per litter who
struggled, starved and begged on the streets year after year. She
was spayed at a VIDAS clinic in May 2004. Our friends in Puerto
Morelos say she's doing great.
|
|
This is Solita when we first met her.
|
This is Solita. This sweet little street pup found a VIDAS
clinic in Playa del Carmen all by herself and sat down at the end
of the line waiting patiently for her turn to be seen by a
veterinarian. When we discovered her she had an inguinal hernia,
a healing forelimb fracture, swollen, bleeding joints and mange
over her mostly bald little body.
Solita was spayed and treated by VIDAS. As she had no home she
traveled with us during our May 2004 clinics. She now lives very
comfortably in the US.
|
This is Solita recovering in Fort Collins a few weeks later.
|
|
|
The Mexican boy in this picture is Erwin. He lives in a poor
community with few positive role models. He came to a VIDAS
clinic one day with a few of his dogs and kittens. He returned
every day after that, during his school lunch break, after
school, on weekends, to bring more animals, to bring his friends
with their pets, to help recover other animals, to ask questions,
to assist with surgical preparation etc. He became an important
member of this team. We hope we made a difference in his life.
|
VIDAS volunteers try to laugh a lot, take care of
each other and remain well fed and well rested. This is exhausting
and often very emotional work.
We have a great time, we’re
proud of the work we do, and we take our job very seriously.
We
work as a group and we insist that our volunteers be flexible,
positive and willing to do any job necessary for the good of the
clinic.
We realize that our daily successes depend on the
cooperation of every team member on a clinic and those at home
raising money and collecting supplies for these clinics.
|
