Santa Anita’s Sam Bernardo and Pete Siberell
Now in its second year, Santa Anita-based Free Animal Doctor, a nonprofit that provides free veterinary services to dogs and cats, has spent more than $300,000 in veterinary care for pets. based in Southern California and throughout the United States. In addition, Free Animal Doctor will peck or euthanize about 825 dogs or cats by the end of the year and will vaccinate and/or microcephaly more than half of them.
The Free Animal Doctor (FAD), conveniently located in parking lot 7 of Santa Anita, opened its doors to the public on September 15, 2020. FAD uses crowdfunding to raise funds for specific animals and provide itemized cost accounting directed by each animal’s attending veterinarian.
“Over the past year, our relationships with the Pasadena Humane Society and the San Gabriel Valley Humane Society have blossomed,” said Sam Bernardo, co-founder of FAD. “This is in large part because our respective missions complement each other. Both of these organizations refer us to individuals who cannot afford the emergency veterinary care of their pets.
“We are also listed as spay and neuter alternatives on their website. In return, we provide fundraising services for both PHS and SGVHS. ”
Bernardo, a practicing attorney based in Sierra Madre, explains that through crowdfunding, costs are limited to each specific veterinary procedure.
“Once funds are raised for each individual animal, no other funds are accepted,” he said.
Santa Anita’s backstretch community also benefits from the FAD, as the clinic has twice offered special days where we can offer spay and neutering for as little as $25 per pet.
“As we had hoped, our spay and neuter clinics have also become popular with [animal] Bernardo said. “For example, last month we partnered with a rescue sponsored by Kacey Montoya, a reporter for KTLA Channel 5, to provide a free spay and neuter clinic. And we have agreed to have similar clinics with two other nonprofit rescues in Southern California early next year.”
For more information on Free Animal Doctor, pet owners are encouraged to visit FreeAnimalDoctor.org, or call (626) 487-7129.
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