Supporting Animals and  People

In 2019, Humane Society Silicon Valley got a call from Dr. Appel, one of our generous volunteer surgeons. At her own practice, she had a dog patient, Noni, come for emergency care. Noni had been drinking excessive amounts of water and her owner, Michael, was alarmed and concerned. He had recently been experiencing homelessness and couldn't afford any treatment or diagnostics.

Dr. Appel performed an ultrasound at her own expense and discovered that Noni needed emergency surgery due to pyometra, a lethal and severe infection of the uterus. Our staff veterinarians, Dr. Moore and Dr. Shearer, told Dr. Appel to have Michael bring Noni to HSSV immediately. By 1 p.m., the surgery had begun! The team worked quickly to remove the infected organ and ensure that Noni would have all the antibiotics and supplies she would need to heal. Noni recovered beautifully and was reunited with her loving and grateful owner.

Noni and Michael's story reflects the local impact we're having in Santa Clara County. We were able to help them because we have committed ourselves to a new strategic priority called Community Development, an area of our work that focuses on supporting people and animals together, where the people are typically vulnerable or from an underrepresented population. To date, our work in this area has focused primarily on people and pets who are currently experiencing homelessness, like Michael and Noni.

If you want to help HSSV with this program, or learn about other ways you can support HSSV, please contact Bridget Keenan at bridget.keenan@hssv.org or 408.942.3006.