The veterinarians who help

Like Dr. Beggs, Dr. John Lyle of Crest Animal Hospital in Kansas City, Mo., has found a way to collaborate with a shelter. For years, Wayside Waifs' Thomas has turned to Dr. Lyle for advice on containing disease outbreaks and other health issues. Dr. Lyle's wife, also a veterinarian, filled in a number of times when Wayside Waifs needed backup. Dr. Lyle helped the shelter's newest veterinarian, Dr. Luke Pickett, with tricky sutures. Dr. Lyle is on a list of recommended veterinarians that Wayside Waifs gives new adopters, and he provides free wellness exams for newly adopted patients.

Wayside Waifs is a stellar example of a shelter, Dr. Lyle says. But not all shelters and rescue groups are created equal. He has worked with organizations whose members took care of too many foster pets at once or refused to follow his medical recommendations. Their animals' poor care endangered Dr. Lyle's clients in terms of disease prevention, so he has cut ties with some of these groups. He counsels veterinarians to perform due diligence on the organizations they'd like to help.

Many of your clients have adopted—or will adopt—pets from shelters. If you're motivated to help or even just meet the staff at these facilities to learn about their operations, chances abound. Working with shelters can even help your bottom line if you identify what you're willing to do, how you'll do it, and how to publicize your help.

Unfortunately, homeless animals will probably always be around—despite hopes to the contrary. On the grounds of Wayside Waifs, behind the 34,000-square-foot facility, sits a small red-brick house. It was donated to Wayside Waifs, along with the 44 acres of surrounding land, by a couple who thought that in a few decades, the pet overpopulation problem would be solved. More than 60 years later, the problem is still with us, but the state-of-the-art facility in front of the small brick home is a testament that people are still looking for solutions.