Lola, a 58-pound German Shorthaired Pointer, became an orphan when her owner passed away. But Lola’s luck changed when a Good Samaritan neighbor took her in and adopted her.
Unfortunately, Lola developed skin problems and a troubling lump on her stomach. Lola’s human knew she had to be seen by a veterinarian to determine the severity of these health issues. So he contacted the Mayor’s Alliance for help to find an affordable veterinary facility.
We contacted a longtime partner, the Humane Society of New York (HSNY). The HSNY Animal Clinic has remained open under restricted access during the COVID-19 pandemic for urgent cases and wellness appointments. HSNY’s Executive Director Sandra DeFeo made an appointment for Lola to be examined by one of the clinic’s doctors.
HSNY asked for the Alliance’s help in transporting Lola to and from her appointment. So we arranged for former Alliance Wheels of Hope driver Debbie Fierro to transport Lola and her human dad at no charge to him. Debbie operates her own private transport service for shelter animals and owned pets called Precious Cargo Pet Transport.
Lola’s appointment day came, and Debbie delivered Lola and her human to the clinic. But instead of sitting idly by waiting for Lola’s appointment to be completed, Debbie made use of the down time. She drove Uptown and picked up a generous supply of donated premium cat litter and delivered it to the NYC Animal Care Center (ACC) shelter in Harlem for the shelter’s foster care team. Then she drove back to the HSNY Animal Clinic, retrieved Lola and her human, and drove them home.
Lola’s exam revealed that surgery was required to remove the lump from her stomach. HSNY once again asked the Alliance to assist with transport for her surgery. For this transport we arranged for Ambuvet Pet Ambulance to transport Lola to and from the HSNY clinic. The surgery went well, and Ambuvet returned Lola to her home the same day.
A few days later, Debbie delivered more supplies donated to the Alliance to ACC’s foster care team. This donation included a litter box with liners, two metal bowls, five bags of litter, and a large carrier. The following week, Debbie completed yet another transport of donated supplies to ACC, including a pet stroller.
These specialized transports for HSNY and ACC are fulfilling the Alliance’s commitment to provide limited transport for rescue groups and other animal welfare organizations that have transport needs that fall outside the criteria for the Best Friends Northeast Transport Program and Bideawee’s NYC Feral Cat Initiative transports. By providing these limited transports, the Alliance is filling gaps in transport and, in doing so, is helping our partners achieve positive outcomes for the animals in their care.