Sisters woman works in Mexico

Tracy Leonhardy and a pal. Photo provided

Sisters resident Tracy Leonhardy put her veterinary technician skills to good use recently in Mexico.

Leonhardy was part of a group called Remote Area Veterinary Services (RAVS) which traveled to Isle de Mujeres, an island northeast of Cancun.

The group of veterinarians, vet students and technicians volunteered their time to do spay and neuter clinics of dogs and cats on the island. About half of the animals they saw were owned by island residents the rest were feral.

"The idea is to control animal populations in certain low income areas," said Leonhardy.

RAVS holds the free clinics in remote and impoverished locales in the U.S., Central America and the Pacific.

In 10 days on Isle de Mujeres, the RAVS volunteers did 182 spays and neuters as well as a few minor surgeries and euthanasias. One of the vets, from San Francisco, performed her 50,000th neuter.

"This vet was so fast; she would perform the operations on the young puppies," said Leonhardy. "Because she did it so quickly it reduced the risk of anesthetizing such young dogs."

Many of the feral dogs brought in were litters of still nursing puppies. The mothers were spayed, dewormed, fed and usually turned loose again. If the puppies were old enough, they were weaned after their operations and also dewormed and fed. As word got around the small island, many of the puppies were adopted by locals.

The feral animals had been humanely trapped prior to the group's arrival. The island is only five miles long and a half mile wide, so there are not many places for these animals to hide.

"The island is very beautiful and is just being discovered by tourists," said Leonhardy.

She did notice a lack of songbirds, most likely due to the feral cats.

"This is the third trip that RAVS has made to this island," she noted. "They are beginning to notice some improvement in the populations of feral animals."

Remote Area Veterinary Services began as part of the University of Tennessee Veterinary school. It is now under the umbrella of the Humane Society of the United States and has some commercial sponsors.

The organization provides a way for students to get hands-on experience in usually primitive conditions, and gives the practicing vets and technicians a chance to do some very worthwhile volunteering.

Leonhardy heard about the program while visiting Guam last winter.

"I've been a licensed vet tech since 1995, and even though I'm not working in the field just now I jumped at the chance to do this," she said. "I needed to get myself there, but then our food and lodging was taken care of. Five of us got to stay in a beautiful home on the beach, owned by a couple from Boston."

The rest of the group stayed with locals who had heard they were coming and offered accommodations.

"I'm signed up for more trips in the spring to Indian reservations in Utah, Wyoming and Washington. It helps to have a really supportive boss and family," she said.

Leonhardy works at Sisters Feed & Supply, whose owners encourage employees to further their experience and education.

For more information on Remote Area Veterinary Services, visit their website at www.remoteareavet.org.