Colorado Veterinarian Treats Pets Of Ukrainian Refugees
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (CBS4) - As millions of people continue to flee their homes in Ukraine, many are taking their pets with them. Last month, a Fort Collins veterinarian was among the countless people stepping up to help make that possible, from the paperwork side to make sure the animals are healthy.
Dr. Jon Geller runs the Street Dog Coalition, a nonprofit that provides veterinary care to the pets of those experiencing homelessness and those at risk of experiencing homelessness.
"It's called street medicine," Geller said. "We have to use our hands and our brains and talking to people about what's going on with their pets to make our best guess."
For seven years, Geller's non-profit has been focused stateside, but last month, the images out of Ukraine compelled him to do something.
"I realized that these Ukraine refugees were very similar in some ways to the folks that we work with," Geller said. "It's women and children and their suitcases and they're dragging their pets."
Soon, he was thousands of miles away setting up a veterinary clinic along the eastern tip of Romania, just across the Danube River from Ukraine.
For 11 days, Geller and vets from around the world dewormed, chipped, and vaccinated refugee pets before helping secure European Union pet passports. The group also treated abandoned animals and even people.
"The pets were pretty healthy, and the people were pretty healthy also," Geller said. "There was a lot of stress in the pets for sure, but I was really impressed with how stoic the women and children were in the face of a very tough, biting wind, tough conditions, and unknown futures."
While the temporary clinic was far from a war zone, Geller saw both fear and resilience. Now back home, he'd gladly make that leap of faith again.
"These pets are for many people providing a purpose. They're certainly providing companionship, even in some cases maybe protection," he said. "If things intensify and there could be a million refugees heading that way... Yes, I would welcome the opportunity to go back."
The temporary clinic is still operating and volunteers from around the world are still helping Ukrainian refugees.
Typically, the nonprofit would apply for grant funding and seek donations before starting a project, but in this case, there was great urgency to get started. You can donate to the effort on the coalition's website.
