Since our inception in 2016, Ziggy's Refuge has been dedicated to providing the highest quality veterinary care for our often disabled residents. We have consistently pushed the boundaries of what is available for farmed animals, recognizing them as sentient beings deserving of long, full lives. Unfortunately, in a world where farmed animals are frequently viewed as commodities, accessing advanced care can be incredibly challenging.

Over the years, this challenge has necessitated journeys of up to 13 hours each way to secure the necessary medical attention for our animals. These trips are not only stressful and costly but also risk the lives of the animals we cherish. Far too often, the long distance to the nearest hospital has resulted in heartbreaking losses, with animals succumbing to their conditions en route or arriving too late for effective treatment.  These are all animals that would be alive today if they had access to local vet care.

We refuse to accept this as an unchangeable reality. To ensure that our animals receive timely and effective care, we are committed to building an on-site clinic at Ziggy's Refuge. The benefits of having a clinic on our premises are manifold:

• First and foremost provide better care for our residents
• After the initial investment we will save money in the long-term
• Avoid extended hospital stays for recovery
• Many ailments currently don't necessarily rise to the occasion of the long trip to the hospital, but need to be addressed regardless.  With a clinic here we could address even minor injuries immediately
• Long-term we can extend these services to other sanctuaries

We strongly believe a clinic of this nature along with the knowledge acquired could be the beginning of a new branch of veterinary medicine we refer to as Sanctuary Medicine.  Sanctuary Medicine will provide a level of care equal to that provided to dogs and cats while freeing itself from the constraints of the politics attached to most University Hospitals which are unfortunately largely funded and endorsed by the animal agriculture industry.  At the end of the day Sanctuary Medicine will focus solely on producing better outcomes for the animals without the influence of an industry focused on the profits the animal produces.  

How Will We Achieve This?

A logical question arises: Even if we have the necessary equipment, Kristin and Jay are not veterinarians. Who will perform the procedures, and how do we know which equipment and supplies are needed? The answer is that we are incredibly fortunate to have Dr. Hawkins, the nation's leading large-animal surgeon, on our board of directors. Recently, Dr. Hawkins accepted a position at NC State, much closer to our sanctuary. He has been, and will continue to be, instrumental in the planning, building, and operation stages of the clinic. Furthermore, having this equipment on-site allows us to utilize local mobile veterinarians who otherwise would not have access to such specialized tools.

We recognize that this is an ambitious goal, but it is essential for the health and well-being of our animals and will serve as a vital tool in advancing large-animal veterinary science. Over the years, we have established strong relationships with some of the top veterinarians and researchers in the country, all of whom we have consulted for this project. These relationships have already yielded remarkable results. A recent example is Ziggy, who was unable to walk unassisted just a few months ago and was deteriorating rapidly. Through our collaboration with an extraordinary researcher who has made significant advancements in treating arthritis in horses, we applied similar treatments to Ziggy with outstanding results. With an on-site clinic, we can extend this level of care to the rest of our aging animals, many of whom are already facing severe arthritis.

HOW DOES THIS ADVANCE THE SCIENCE???

Another objective of this project is to create a comprehensive database to serve as a central repository for information obtained from unusual cases specific to sanctuaries. There are countless instances where sanctuary animals present with rare conditions, leaving veterinarians at a standstill. Occasionally, another sanctuary may have encountered and successfully treated a similar case and can share their knowledge. While these instances are invaluable and demonstrate an opportunity to advance veterinary science, too often this vital information fails to reach the right people in time. Without the information being catalogued in one accessible location, it's completely up to chance that the next animal to have a similar condition will benefit from what was previously learned leaving everything at a standstill.  Additionally, even when there are poor outcomes there is room to learn and we cannot except that when an animal dies and the valuable lesson potentially learned in the process is wasted.  Additional lives could be saved as we speak if a system like this were put in to place years ago.  It's long passed due but it never too late to do the right thing!!!!  If the hospitals will not share information among themselves and many times refuse to communicate with other hospitals entirely then we need to do it ourselves.  This will advance the science not just across the country but across the globe!!!  This can also become a tool to become a lifelong form of revenue.