Healing Hearts and Paws: The Compassionate Mission of Animal Fix Clinic

A couple stands in front of the unassuming storefront of the Animal Fix Clinic in Richmond. They hold a small trembling black and white dog between them. Erin Kerley, the community programs manager, pops out and asks if they have an appointment. The couple shakes their head “no”. Erin asks a few more questions. She looks over her shoulder, as if assessing the amount of patients inside and then smiles at them. “Let’s see what we can do for you.” she says and beckons them inside.

“We’ve never turned anyone away for lack of finances.”

Lauren Pensa gently holds Coco for a soothing cuddle. All photos by Vita Hewitt

This is a very special non-profit clinic. If you have had a pet, you probably realize that the medicals bills can be heart wrenching. This can actually be a matter of life and death for pet owners on a fixed or low income. This is where the Animal Fix Clinic comes in.

“I think every single day we honestly have at least one person needs help with their pet and can’t contribute anything. We’ve never turned anyone away for lack of finances. We do charge for services. We have a fee for service and a sliding scale. At the same time, if someone is just not able to do it we always figure it out.” says Erin.

Shrimp and Harriet greet each guest with tail wags.

Inside the clinic a chihuahua and a pitbull that go by the names of Shrimp and Harriet (both adopted) jump up to greet me. It’s clear that Shrimp runs the show as she tangles around a stoic Harriet who seems accepting of her fate. A row of kittens that go by the names of Biloxi, Bedazzler and Babs sit recovering from being spayed and neutered in a tidy line of carriers. They were found in front of a store on Telegraph avenue and will be up for adoption at Berkeley Animal Control.

Bedazzler will be up for adoption at Berkeley Animal Control.

The staff at the clinic bustle in an efficient dance as they show each animal gentle care and consideration. I ask Robin Post, the technician supervisor, how it works when a client cannot pay the bill.

“We had someone show up the other day with a dog in a baby stroller who lives in an encampment in Berkeley. He had a horrible abcess and was really, really sick. She (the owner) just pulled up with the stroller and had no where else to go. She had tried to take him other places but didn’t have any money. We didn’t want her to have to surrender him to the shelter because they were very bonded. He loved her. He loved his encampment life. He was in great body condition. He just happened to fall upon this one injury and she needed help. We were able to deal with his wound.

She was able to bring him back for rechecks. We were able to connect with Muttville a senior dog rescue because the stroller she had him in was also her walker and one wheel had fallen off. She wasn’t able to walk with it and it was hard to get around. Muttville always has strollers. They put a brand new stroller aside for her.We picked it up brought it here and she came and traded out her old stroller. We took out his stitches. We get a lot of food donations so we were able to fill the stroller with food for him too. That kind of thing happens all the time where we don’t ever have to say no, we just figure it out.” she tells me.

Robin Post soothes a puppy that will be available for adoption at Berkeley Animal Control.

“We are a non-profit veterinary clinic with a highly efficient medical team that focuses everything we have on delivering exemplary surgical care to anyone who needs our help. We don’t just sit around to discuss the idea of “Access to Care”. We simply deliver it.” says Dr. Jean Goh the medical director. Because of this, the clinic was able to help over 7000 dogs and cats in the community last year.

The Animal Fix Clinic began in 1998 as a grassroots group called Fix our Ferals. Their success in caring for community cats through trap-neuter-return (TNR) and pop up clinics in the early 2000’s allowed them to open the spay/neuter clinic in Richmond. As a result, they were able to expand their offerings to include essential surgeries for cats and dogs. In 2021 they became the Animal Fix Clinic to better reflect the expanded scope of what they could offer.

Now they are about to move to a permanent location in Pinole that was previously used as an animal shelter for West Contra Costa County. Working with an architect to create a state-of-the-art clinic they will utilize the increased space to accommodate twice as many animals that need help. With the expanded space and a permanent location, this would be an invaluable part of the Bay Area Community.

Where to find Animal Fix Clinic Online & Donate:

If you would like to reach out or donate to this beautiful organization please click on the links to learn more.

Web: animalfixclinic.org
IG: @animalfixclinic
FB: @AnimalFixClinic

Donate: https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/animalfixclinic

Support Pinole campaign (with video): https://www.gofundme.com/f/fund-animal-fix-clinics-move-to-pinole