Contact: Karen Templeton
A $300,000 Humane Society of the United States grant announced Monday [March 30] will provide continuing support for the popular traveling service program of Mississippi State's College of Veterinary Medicine.
The major donation by the Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization will help cover numerous university expenses incurred as the college's mobile veterinary clinics provide professional services to 18 North Mississippi animal shelters. Supported entirely by grants and donations, the student-staffed, faculty-supervised clinics spay and neuter homeless animals.
Dr. Phil Bushby led in establishing the traveling clinic program. Now a professor emeritus and former holder of the college's Marcia Lane Endowed Chair in Humane Ethics and Animal Welfare, he continues to seek grants and identify potential donors while also inspiring MSU students to help raise funds to keep the program going.
"Many of the animal shelters we work with have as high as a 70 percent euthanasia rate, but more than an 80 percent adoption rate for animals that are spayed or neutered," Bushby said.
The society's "generous grant will help us continue to provide students with surgical skills, and help us work to resolve the homeless animal issue in our communities," he continued. "Along with the surgical experience gained, students leave our program already thinking about how they can make a positive impact in the communities in which they will practice."
Presentation of the grant was made in New Orleans, Louisiana, as part of the society's 24th annual Animal Care Expo taking place all this week at the Earnest N. Morial Convention Center.
"We remain committed to our Gulf Coast partners in the fight to combat pet overpopulation and to prevent the euthanasia of healthy, adoptable animals," said Wayne Pacelle, HSUS president and CEO.
In addition to helping promote animal health at animal shelters in the region, the grant will enable opportunities for more students to expand their proficiencies in shelter medicine.
"A priority for the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association is to promote the veterinary profession's involvement in improving the lives of shelter animals," said Melissa Rubin, the society's vice president of the animal care centers and veterinary services.
"These grants help promote awareness among veterinary students and also foster the field of shelter medicine, which is so critical to ensuring that animals in shelters receive quality medical care," she added.
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization. Now in its sixth decade, the organization works to protect all animals, confront all forms of cruelty and remains the nation's largest provider of hands-on services for animals. For details, visit www.humanesociety.org.
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