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Desert Animal Companions is a resource for information about individuals and groups working in partnership to better the lives of people and companion animals on the Navajo Reservation. The primary purpose of this site is to raise awareness, connect people who wish to contribute with people providing services, assist networking and partnership among concerned individuals and groups, and ultimately to relieve the suffering and misery of companion animals living on the Navajo Reservation.

Companion animal overpopulation and the inability to pay for veterinary services is a huge problem on the Navajo Reservation. The Navajo Nation, encompassing 26,000 square miles in three states (Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah), is home to an estimated 160,000 stray dogs and cats. The sheer expanse of the Nation presents a challenge in terms of providing services to tribal members, and animal problems on the Nation are growing.

[ Updated April 21, 2009 ]

• Read an article in the Gallup Independent about the Crownpoint All-Mutt Dog Show, which took place on Saturday, April 18, 2009. This community event is the brainchild of Mary Vitt, an audiologist and photographer who also fosters for Blackhat Humane, and has lived in Crownpoint for eight years.



• Dr. Carol Holgate, a Navajo veterinarian from Tuba City, AZ, will be providing a series of five mobile veterinary clinics in Kayenta in spring, 2009, with subsidized low-cost spay/neuter and vaccinations for dogs and cats. Find out more info an download the flyer here.



• In 2005, Dina Huntinghorse created a film called Rez Dogs, about the situation of the stray dogs on the Navajo Nation. You can view it online here.



• See the progress report on subsidized low-cost spay/neuter services delivered to Kayenta in 2008 by Dr. Carol Holgate, Tuba City veterinarian, and subsidized by the Pegasus Foundation, Foundation for Protection of Animals, Best Friends Animal Society, and Hampton Inn and Burger King of Kayenta. Find out more here.



• Join us at a fundraising event to benefit Blackhat Humane Society, on Saturday, September 27, 2008, from 6-9 p.m., at Iggy's in St. Johns, AZ. Find out more here.



• Subsidized low-cost spay/neuter and vaccination clinics for dogs and cats with services provided by Dr. Holgate, a Navajo veterinarian from Tuba City, AZ, will be taking place in fall, 2008, in Kayenta. Find out more info and download the flyer here. The clinics are being subsidized by the Pegasus Foundation, local businesses of the Hampton Inn and Burger King of Kayenta, the Foundation for Protection of Animals (Durango, CO), and Best Friends Animal Society (Kanab, UT).



• Dr. Holgate, a Navajo veterinarian from Tuba City, AZ, will be providing a series of six mobile veterinary clinics in Kayenta this spring, including subsidized spay/neuter and vaccinations for dogs and cats. Find out more info and download the flyer here. The clinics are being subsidized by the Pegasus Foundation and local businesses of the Hampton Inn and Burger King of Kayenta.



• Latest news from Fredonia Humane Society and the Gap project. Support the Arizona Gap Spay/Neuter Project. Send a check through the mail to: Fredonia Humane Society, P.O. Box 1238, Fredonia, AZ 86022.



• Plateauland Mobile Veterinary Services has resumed bringing low-cost spay/neuter and vaccination services in their mobile unit to places on the Navajo Nation. Here is Plateauland's current fee schedule. Here is the calendar of where they will be providing services. Plateauland is a part of the Second Chance Center for Animals, located in Flagstaff, AZ.



• Support Fredonia Humane, in Fredonia, AZ, which is rescuing strays from the Gap, a remote part of the western Navajo Nation, near Page, AZ. National Geographic, while visiting Best Friends to film some segments on Dogtown, filmed at the Gap dumpsters. You can see these segments on National Geographic channel in January, 2008.



• Support Blackhat Humane, which has foster homes all over the eastern side of the Navajo Nation in many towns, where fosters rescue strays. Rescued dogs then get veterinary care, are socialized to living in a family, and then put up for adoption through petfinder. You can find out more about Blackhat Humane here.



• Cindy Yurth has written a series of articles, published in the Navajo Times, about the stray dogs on the Navajo Nation. Read the first story, Rez littered with stray dogs, published August 9, 2007, here. Read part two, The lucky ones, published August 16, 2007, here.



• Tom and Lori Corrigan, of Fredonia Humane, a small animal control shelter located in Fredonia, AZ, in a partnership with Best Friends, is helping a remote corner of the Navajo Nation located between Tuba City and Page, known as The Gap. They are bringing spay/neuter and veterinary services, along with food, and relocation for some lucky animals, and much needed help for their families. You can read about it here.



• 13 years of mobile free spay/neuter services on the Navajo Nation were provided by the Spay-Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP), based in Houston, TX. In June, 2005, because of disagreements between tribal officers and SNAP founder Sean Hawkins, very important collaborative efforts collapsed, and Sean Hawkins left SNAP. Animal News reported on the situation here.
     Even with their season cut short in 2005, SNAP still provided free spay/neuter services to 350 animals in Kayenta, 100 in Tuba City, and several other towns on the Navajo Nation. We thank them for their efforts!



• An article about stray dogs and overpopulation on the Navajo Nation was published in the Farmington Daily Times on August 1, 2005. Stacey Daw, Navajo Nation Animal Control officer of Shiprock, is interviewed in the article and Sharon Morgan of Desert Dawg Rescue. You can read it online here. (requires Adobe Reader)



• An article about dog overpopulation on Arizona reservations was written by Debra White and Dina Huntinghorse and published in the June 30, 2005, issue of Indian Country Today. You can read it online here.



• Experiences with rez dogs can change your life. Frank DiGianni wrote a wonderful piece about his experience, entitled "Eulogy for My Dog," which was published on the usadeepsouth.com web site. You can read it online here.



• Here's a report on accomplishments from the May 2-6 Spay/Neuter Partnership week in Tuba City, AZ.



• Best Friends No More Homeless Pets has an article on Dr. Carol Holgate, a wonderful vet who works with Plateauland Mobile Veterinary Clinic, the Northern Arizona Second Chance Center, and Dr. Holgate also has her own practice in Tuba City, AZ.



• A map of the Navajo Nation Chapters has also been added to the Background section.



• Free Spay/Neuter services were provided in Tuba City by Plateauland and SNAP during the week of May 2-6 at the Tuba City Chapter House parking lot. Best Friends Animal Society also participated in this "superclinic" by bringing an animal behaviorist and offering free collars and pet i.d. tags on May 3-5. The Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals provided humane education in the schools the previous week. All services were coordinated through the Navajo Nation Veterinary & Livestock Program, and many member groups and volunteers participated in this effort. See the flyer here.



• Save Our Strays (SOS) of Chinle is trying to make a difference in their community by holding free vaccinations clinics. Read the Gallup Independent article from April 14th. Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. recently issued a proclamation in support of Animal Control. Read the Gallup Independent article published on March 17th.



• Kayenta Animal Control & Shelter (KACS) now has it's own web site. KACS is hosting free spay/neuter clinics with services provided by SNAP in spring and summer 2005.



• Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals had it's grand opening on October 30, 2004, which was attended by about 500 people. The center is now open for business and is placing animals for adoption. Please volunteer and support the center, which has the possibility of making an important difference in the lives of animals in the region.



• Tova Salabye, Navajo Nation Puppy Program Coordinator and SNAP Outreach Coordinator, and Cathie Myers, Best Friends Animal Society Humane Education Director, and Sherry Woodard, Best Friends Animal Care Consultant, will be sharing humane education information and materials at a booth at the 58th Annual Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, on Kid's Day, September 9, 2004. There will be materials for children and for teachers. Look for the booth outside near the horseshoe arena. Please stop by. See you at the Fair!



• Spay/Neuter Partnership held a collaborative event in Kayenta, AZ, July 12 - 16 focusing on healthy animals, healthy families, healthy communities. There was a great response from the community in Kayenta. Here is more information on how the week went, with accompanying photos. Following the services week, there were more activities in Kayenta, including a collaboration between the humane groups and Navajo Nation Animal Control, that allowed animals from a roundup that were not reclaimed by their owners to be rescued and transferred to other shelters and rescue groups. Read that story (with photos of many of the animals) here. Best Friends also published a feature article on their web site about the collaboration and rescue.



• Article in the May 20 issue of the Navajo Times about the second go-round of West Nile Virus vaccination clinics for horses scheduled in many chapters of Navajoland.



• Spay/Neuter Partnership in Shiprock, NM, May 3 -7, received a great response from the Shiprock community. 1500 elementary and middle school students heard humane education presentations. Arizona Humane Society, SNAP, and Plateauland provided mobile spay/neuter services, and together provided a total of 265 free spay/neuters. Inexpensive vaccination packages were offered, and a whopping total of 905 vaccinations were given, along with a lot of deworming. Over 500 free collars and 270 free tags were distributed. Best Friends Animal Society and PetSmart donated the collars and Best Friends provided the tag machine and the free tags. Participating groups include Navajo Nation Veterinary & Livestock Program, Arizona Humane Society, Spay-Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP), and Plateauland. Many volunteers also contributed their time and energy. A big thank you to all of the participants. The goal of all of these services is to provide education and health services in support of healthy animals, healthy families, and healthy communities. View photos from Shiprock.


Previous News

Here are the groups and individuals working to better the lives and conditions of companion animals on the Navajo Nation. These groups provide a wide array of services from free or low cost spay/neuter programs, to vaccinations, animal rescue, humane education, and other animal welfare services. Here is a brief description, meant to serve as an introduction, with links to more in depth information for each group.

Navajo Nation Veterinary & Livestock Program

All agencies are currently coordinating their services through the Navajo Nation Veterinary Program, based in Window Rock, Arizona, and program manager Glenda Davis. The Major services of the NNVLP are:

• Low cost comprehensive veterinary services
• Free spay and neuter services
• Puppy Adoption Program
• Livestock and herd treatments
• 007 Second chance/Hard luck cases

More information about NNVLP's mission, goals and objectives is available here.

Navajo Nation Animal Control

The Navajo Nation is a sovereign nation. All groups working to help the animals must respect and follow the Navajo Nation Animal Control regulations regarding companion animals. You can view the regulations here: Navajo Nation Animal Control Laws (requires Acrobat)

Plateauland Mobile Veterinary Clinic

Plateauland Veterinary Clinic's mission is to reduce the overpopulation and improve the health of companion animals by offering low-cost spay/neuter surgeries, vaccinations and general health care primarily at the Hopi, Western Navajo, Apache and Yavapai Reservations, as well as off Reservation sites throughout Northern Arizona. Please go directly to their very informative website.

Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals

The Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals is dedicated to alleviating companion animal suffering on Native American Reservations and other rural communities in Northern Arizona by providing humane education, low cost spay/neuter surgeries, basic medical care, temporary shelter and adoption services.

Robert T. Wilson Foundation

The Robert T. Wilson Foundation, founded in the 1950's, is a small, private tax-exempt foundation headquartered in Flagstaff, Arizona. During the past six years, the foundation has been involved in helping to develop solutions to the companion animal overpopulation crisis resulting in poor health on the Navajo and Hopi Reservations.
      In October 1995, the Foundation put into operation Plateauland Veterinary Clinic, a mobile low-cost spay/neuter and vaccination clinic to address these issues on the Western Navajo and Hopi Reservations in Northern Arizona. It is the Clinic's goal to continue to provide this quality, low-cost service to areas it currently services and to expand to other reservations and areas throughout Arizona, while simultaneously educating the public, particularly children, about the responsibilities of pet ownership and the fundamentals of humane animal care and treatment.

Kayenta Animal Control & Shelter

Frank Ramsey of Kayenta in conjunction with the Kayenta Township is hoping to open an animal shelter in Kayenta. Humane education, spay/neuter programs, dissemination of low-cost vaccinations, as well as adoptions and rescue and transfer to other humane organizations are the focus while moving towards having a shelter. See their website.

SNAP Spay/Neuter Assistance

The Spay-Neuter Assistance Program exists to stop the destruction of healthy dogs and cats in animal shelters resulting from overpopulation. SNAP provides free and low cost spaying, neutering, and veterinary care, currently operating clinics in Houston and San Antonio, Texas. SNAP also runs a mobile clinic program on Hopi, Zuni, and Navajo tribal lands, and in Hampton Roads, Virginia, and Monterrey, Mexico. After 13 years of providing free mobile spay/neuter services on the Navajo Nation, SNAP is no longer working on the Navajo Nation. Visit their great website.

Pegasus Foundation

The Pegasus Foundation is a private independent foundation committed to animal protection, environmental preservation and public education. We believe that human beings must strive to make the world a more humane place for all living things. Through a multi-year initiative, the Pegasus Foundation works with a coalition of service providers to provide spay/neuter, vaccination and other veterinary services to companion animals on the Navajo Nation.

Humane Society of the US

The Humane Society of the US has emerged as the world's largest animal protection organization. The HSUS envisions a world in which people satisfy the physical and emotional needs of domestic animals; protect wild animals and their environments; and change their relationships with other animals, evolving them from exploitation and harm to respect and compassion.

First Strike is a project of the Humane Society of the United States launched in 1997 with two main goals: to increase public and professional awareness of the connection between animal cruelty and human violence and to encourage professionals involved in antiviolence efforts to work together. Vist their great website.

International Fund for Animal Welfare

The IFAW is involved is a partner in many programs on the Navajo Nation, including mobile spay/neuter clinics and humane education. Read more about the programs here.

Blackhat Humane Society

Blackhat Humane Society is a non-profit organization established in 2000, dedicated to rescuing and finding homes for abandoned animals and livestock. They have monthly meetings in Window Rock. Their goals include animal care education for all ages but concentrating on school-age children, a mobile clinic, a small shelter where strays can be rehabilitated and subsequently adopted, and the creation of educational videos (in English and Navajo) that can be shared in the local chapter houses and schools. Blackhat's mission is to find a loving, healthy home for every adoptable dog, cat and livestock from the Navajo Nation. View their website which includes animals available for adoption now.

Tuba City Humane Society

Tuba City Humane Society is a nonprofit organization founded in May, 1994, by a small group of community members who were concerned about the overpopulation problem of dogs and cats roaming the community. Our objectives are: to rescue as many stray dogs and cats as our resources will allow and to bring them to a state of health for adoption; encourage and educate the community on the importance of immunizations and spay/neuter surgery for their pets; educate the community on the proper care and training of their pets. Check out their website for more information.

Arizona Humane Society

It is the mission of The Arizona Humane Society to build healthy relationships between animals and people.

Indian Health Service

Public health conditions are adversely affected by companion animal overpopulation problems. Dog bites are a continual hazard on the reservation (7,000 were recorded in 1997). Zoonotic diseases are diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans, underscoring the importance of companion animal vaccinations and disease prevention measures. There is a very fine issue of "The IHS Primary Care Provider" from November, 1995, which covers a full range of human/companion animal issues. Requires Acrobat Reader plugin.

Best Friends Animal Society

Best Friends is the largest sanctuary for abused and abandoned cats and dogs and other animals. They are located in Angel Canyon, outside of Kanab, Utah, and their mission is to help bring about a time when there are no more homeless pets. They are an incredible and pioneering worldwide resource. Visit their website, which contains a wealth of information, news, and networking opportunities.

PETsMART Charities

PETsMART Charities has granted over $31 million to animal welfare organizations and shelters. In store adoptions have saved more than 1.7 million homeless pets to date. In addition, PETsMART Charities participates in partnerships with many of the organizations working to help animals on the Navajo Nation.

RAVS

The Humane Society of the United States(tm) Rural Area Veterinary Services (RAVS) (formerly Remote Area Medical Services), brings free veterinary services to poor communities in the U.S. and abroad. Dr. Eric Davis, Director of the Humane Society of the United States, Rural Area Veterinary Services Program, began delivering volunteer veterinary services while a faculty member at the College of Veterinary Medicine at The University of Tennessee, Knoxville. His volunteers have treated tens of thousands of animals, bringing quality veterinary care to those who need it most in the western hemisphere and the Pacific. Check out the RAVS web site. Here's more info about RAVS at the HSUS site. You can donate to RAVS through this link at the Humane Society of the US. You can also sign up for an email newsletter to keep in touch with what RAVS is doing.

Disclaimer - There is no implied endorsement of the individuals or groups listed on this web site, or the services they offer, by the Navajo Nation Veterinary & Livestock Program or by Navajo Nation Animal Control (a division of Navajo Nation Fish and Wildlife). Any person, organization, or entity choosing to enter into contracts or agreements with the individuals and groups listed on this site should exercise due diligence prior to entering into a contract. Any individuals or groups wishing to provide services to the animals on the Navajo Nation should coordinate their efforts through the appropriate tribal agency.

While every effort has been made to insure reliable and accurate information, any errors or omissions are the sole responsibility of the webmaster, Rose Z. Moonwater.