The Street Dog Coalition | Operation Ukraine
Ukraine Rescue, Relief & Rebuild
Coalition Partner

The Street Dog Coalition

The Street Dog Coalition (SDC) was established veterinarian Dr. Jon Geller who recognized the lack of access to veterinary care for pets of people experiencing homelessness.  In May 2015, the first SDC clinic was held in Fort Collins, CO, home of Colorado State University’s (CSU) College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, near a day shelter for people experiencing homelessness.  That day, twenty-five dogs and five cats received free veterinary care from a team of five veterinarians, four veterinary technicians, three veterinary students, and several volunteers. Since then, SDC has expanded its geographic footprint substantially since then and now organizes “pop-up” street clinics in more than fifty cities across the United States.

Caring for Pets Blue Tent by TSDCWCREDS

Dr. Geller identified a need in Ukraine and took action. He understood that refugees would have to abandon their pets if they couldn’t obtain the 3-shot rabies vaccinations, microchips and pet passports to continue on their journey. This led him to Isaccea, Romania, on the southern border of Ukraine where he set up a clinic under a large blue tent (which came to be known as the Blue Vet Group) checking pets of war refugees alongside other volunteer agencies, including fellow U3R partner Save the Dogs and Other Animals. 

Mobile clinic | Photo credit: Street Dog CoalitionSDC continues to monitor the situation in Ukraine. It has recently raised funds to equip a mobile veterinary clinic that can operate in and around Ukraine as hostilities permit. 

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Organizational Information

Lame elephant at the Odessa Zoo

“Huge thank you to Dr. Jon [Founder of Street Dog Coalition] and Dr. Maz without who none of this would be possible. You do so much good work. It’s safe to say you changed our lives (and many others).”

~@avocamilla, Instagram

Updates from The Street Dog Coalition

  • Veterinary supplies delivered to Zoolux Clinic in Kyiv
  • Veterinary supplies purchased for Ukrainian Volunteer Battalion Hospitaliery on the front lines
  • New portable Ultrasound unit for a clinic in Bucha
  • Supplies for sterilization, medications and sterilization of shelter pets in Odessa, plus funding for construction materials
  • Consult for lame elephant at Odessa Zoo plus badly needed supplies
  • Consult with Mykolaiv Zoo which is open but needs running water
  • Sterilization supplies and veterinary assistance for Romanian non-profit at Ukraine border
  • Veterinary oversight by Ukraine veterinarian who will serve as medical director for Breaking The Chains
  • Radiation safety supplies for clinic in Mariupol, replacing x-ray machine stolen by the Russians
  • Isaccea “Blue Vet” tent clinic on hold pending refugee movement
  • Rabies titer testing program to allow entry of Ukraine pets into the US without 28-day quarantine at border
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