HSUS delivers another $200,000 to LSU shelter medicine program

BATON ROUGE — Louisiana State University (LSU) School of Veterinary Medicine received $200,000 from the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) for its shelter medicine program. The monies will allow the program to expand beyond the boundaries of southern Louisiana, the university reports.

LSU's shelter medicine program gives veterinary students a hands-on opportunity to learn surgical skills and treat dogs and cats.

The Shelter Medicine and Population Control rotation is an elective that veterinary students can take during their third- or fourth-year. An emphasis is placed on animal wellness, pet population dynamics, disaster medicine, animal behavior and animal welfare.

HSUS donated a total of $800,000 to the program, which currently serves shelters and animal-control centers in the parishes of Ascension, Calcasieu, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafayette, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. John, St. Martin, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and West Baton Rouge. The rotation was developed using grants from HSUS and the American Kennel Club Companion Animal Recovery in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

"Our goal is to have decreased euthanasia rates in the shelters through better animal health care, provide healthier animals for adoption and encourage students to volunteer or seek employment in shelters once they graduate," says Wendy Wolfson, a veterinary surgery instructor and director of the shelter medicine program.