Humane Animal Partners free vaccination clinic set Sept. 21

Humane Animal Partners, a statewide animal welfare organization with adoption centers in Rehoboth Beach, Wilmington and Stanton/Christiana, recognizes the financial strain many pet owners and animal caretakers face when it comes to accessible veterinary care.

Working in partnership with the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement and PetSmart Charities, HAP will host its fourth free wellness and vaccination clinics in Sussex County from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 21 at Milton CHEER, 24855 Broadkill Road, Milton. 

The event comes on the heels of HAP’s first three free wellness clinics, held over the past several months throughout Sussex County. The clinic will provide free vaccines including DHPP, FVRCP, Bordetella, and rabies, as well as microchips and general deworming. Pet wellness exams will be offered in addition to vaccinations. Services are on a first-come, first-served basis.

The clinics are made possible through both HAP’s ongoing partnership with the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement and a generous $188,000 grant awarded by PetSmart Charities in 2022. As part of this two-year project, DANA is supporting HAP in conducting research on Sussex County pet owners’ specific needs, and how to best deliver programs that increase their access to affordable veterinary care. Consultants hired by DANA have assisted in conducting interviews and surveys with community members, veterinarians and other stakeholders to determine where veterinary needs are greatest.

Also critical to the success of this research mission is the Delaware Veterinary Medicine Association, which works to ensure that any service model employed by HAP complements local veterinarians’ work rather than causing competition for them.

Nearly 50 million pets in the United States cannot access even the most basic veterinary care. Due to cost and other barriers, pets in under-resourced communities often do not receive essential services such as preventative care, vaccinations, spay/neuter services, dental and other medical care.

For more information, go to humaneanimalpartners.org.