When Jade Statt lost her beloved dog Oakley, her heart was so broken that she didn’t wish such pain on anyone else. At the same time, one evening she met a homeless man and his beloved dog. They got to talking and Jade, who works as a veterinarian, could see how much the man loved his dog. But at the same time, he was very worried about her health because her skin disease was getting worse.
Even though Jade wanted to help her immediately, unfortunately she didn’t have any equipment or anything with her to treat the poor dog. “It was something I could have treated if I had the right equipment with me,” Jade told LADbible. “You could tell how big his worries were and how helpless he felt in the situation.”
That encounter got Jade thinking about how she would have felt if her dog had been in the situation. She could feel the desperation of the man who could not help his beloved dog. The exchange with him gave Jade the idea to go out on the streets and offer her help to animals that otherwise wouldn’t receive treatment because their owners couldn’t afford it.
“With a backpack full of medicine, a stethoscope and a nurse, I started Streetvetting in October 2016,” Jade told VSGD. “…And it was obvious that this service was needed.”
It started as an experiment but grew, even more so after she met veterinarian Sam Joseph, who was doing something similar. Jade and Sam teamed up and have been running StreetVet ever since, which is also officially registered as a nonprofit organization.
The organization now has about 30 veterinary volunteers who take to the streets to help homeless people’s animals in about 17 locations in England.
When the volunteers set out, they have everything they need to set up a fully functional exam room on the streets for the friends on four paws. They also bring toys and food, and can use their backpack medical kits to test urine and blood samples and check dogs for lumps.
And if the dogs need further treatment, they’ll be taken to a nearby practice where they can be better cared for.
“The idea behind StreetVet is to take care of the dogs. Everything I do in the consultation, I can do on the street, and if more treatments are needed, you can access a nearby practice,” Jade told The Paw Post. “We try to treat as many dogs as possible, but more importantly, we want people to know where we are and they can bring their dogs to us.”
The organization has now treated more than 1,000 dogs, 102 cats, 3 ferrets and 2 bunnies, and has been able to help countless homeless people. StreetVet works with local organizations such as soup kitchens to let people know that these helpers exist.
Incidentally, Jade gave the following tip to those who want to help: “Don’t walk by people. With one conversation, you can already animate people to make a change and that can already help.”
This is a great organization whose efforts help not only the homeless, but also their beloved animals.
Share this article to thank everyone involved for their wonderful work.
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