On a steamy Saturday last summer, I volunteered my help to DEGA Mobile Veterinary Care, a nonprofit dedicated to providing free basic veterinary services to low/no income and homeless pet owners. We set up outside the Harnett County Health Department in Lillington and by 8:30 a.m. the cars and pickups started coming. Tailgate tents kept the sun at bay, tables were ready for exams and administrative tasks, and a scale sat nearby. Coolers kept vaccines and medications chilled; bins overflowed with boxes of syringes, nail clippers, flea/tick and heartworm preventatives, rabies tags, thermometers, cotton swabs, ear cleanser, slip leashes and muzzles, towels and cleaning supplies, and more. Everyone present was cool and calm, focused on the fur-babies waiting to meet “Dr. April.”
In February 2021, Fuquay-Varina resident and veterinarian April Gessner founded DEGA which stands for “Determined for Everyone to Gain Access (to veterinary care).” DEGA is approved by the NC Veterinary Medical Board and the first 501c3 nonprofit of its kind in our area, but not a new endeavor for Dr. Gessner. In vet school at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine in St. Kitts, West Indies, she started a chapter of VIDA (Volunteers for Intercultural & Definitive Adventures), an international program that enables veterinary students to set up field care and spay/neuter clinics in underserved communities. She continued providing free veterinary care in impoverished countries in Central America, South America, and Asia. Her passion to help the pet owners who can least afford veterinary care led her to start DEGA so that she could support pets on a local level just as she has done internationally.
Seeing a Need Here at Home
Gessner knows from experience, “Many people can barely feed, clothe, or shelter themselves, but they would forego some of those things for the love of a pet. Many will not go into the shelters if they don’t allow pets. Some live out in the woods because they don’t want their pets taken from them. But…pets provide that kind of security and companionship.”
Having successfully set up free veterinary field clinics outside of the U.S., Gessner knew the same could be done in Wake County. She and her husband, veterinary radiologist Bennett Deddens, who she met at RUSVM in St. Kitts, designed a logo and website, lined up volunteers, and figured out ways to reach the pet owners who needed help. The timing was right. Gessner, an ER relief vet, had stepped back to do relief rotation ER care at Triangle Veterinary Referral Hospital (TVRH) in Holly Springs and other local vet hospitals when her daughter was in pre-K. She cut back more in 2021 to be home to help her daughter with online learning in school. When it came to acquiring supplies and medications to get DEGA off the ground, she credits TVRH, saying, “I asked them if they wanted to donate, and they immediately placed an order. Two days later, there was everything I needed. It was very generous. Because of them, I was able to start so quickly.”
My job as a volunteer that summer Saturday was to greet pet owners, collect forms, and review documents of hardship. Free veterinary care, even at a basic or prevention level, is a big deal. Having been a dog owner most of my life, I knew the value of the services and medications pet owners were receiving. It’s important to Gessner that she serve the population that needs her the most but reaching those people can be challenging.
DEGA connects with food pantries, shelters for the homeless and domestic violence survivors, entities that provide services for LBGT+ and similarly vulnerable populations, county animal services, and other groups that maintain information about the people they serve. Gessner brings her clinic and volunteers, and the nonprofit representatives often help with advertising and coordinating events. In Lillington, for example, we partnered with Holli Hargrove, former manager of Harnett County Animal Services and a volunteer with Rise and Shine Pit Bull Rescue. DEGA provided the first clinic of its kind in Harnett County that day and Hargrove was overwhelmed by the turnout.
“I had no idea what to expect,” Hargrove said. “Officers gave [the information] to people they knew could benefit from it. We had some nonprofits and people in the community work with us and I asked Social Services if they had any clients that had animals. It makes me happy to see that they are here to make sure their animals are cared for.”
An Exceptional Team
Gessner coordinates veterinary technicians, volunteers, and usually a second doctor to work alongside her. “Sometimes it’s Bennett,” she said. “More times than not, it’s Dr. Hadiya Boyd. Normally, I would have at least six, sometimes eight, techs. When it’s just me, I get double the techs. It’s nice to have two per doctor plus a couple to draw up vaccines.”
The volunteers are mostly people that she and Deddens know. I met regulars who attend every clinic, colleagues of Gessner and Deddens, and students studying veterinary medicine. Susan Passey who volunteers with Paws 4 Purpose, an animal advocacy nonprofit at the coast, drove from Onslow County to help. “Just because people don’t have unlimited funds doesn’t mean they don’t love their pet,” she said, adding that she and Gessner help each other as often as possible because “when rescues come together for one common goal, imagine what we can accomplish.”
The process was smooth. Pet data was entered into the computer and Gessner, Deddens, and Durham veterinarian Dr. Jennifer Knutzen (a frequent volunteer), worked with the technicians to perform physical exams and administer vaccinations and medications. Each pet owner received documentation of their pet’s condition, the vet’s assessment, and, as needed, a course of treatment.
Missing from the Lillington clinic was the “fun table,” as Gessner calls it, where volunteer Mindy Nelson helps pet owners select new collars, leashes, and harnesses of all sizes, as well as stuffed animals, chew toys, and other goodies. And Gessner remains grateful to Fuquay volunteer Darcy Woodward who was helping at a previous clinic and, seeing the need for more shade, ran to Walmart to buy canopies and donated them on the spot.
“What a blessing this is to us”
The DEGA team knows, for the most part, what ailments and conditions they will treat at one of their clinics. “We usually see flea allergy dermatitis,” Gessner said. “Mainly skin, ears, and maybe some fevers. Heartworms have not been as bad as I thought they would be. We haven’t had as many positives; usually that’s a problem. When somebody contacts me to get more prevention medications, I will always give out more because that means they’re really trying.”
Fifty-six pets, often multiple pets per vehicle, were cared for in Lillington that day. Small and large breeds, seniors and puppies, and everything in between. A Spring Lake couple brought a trio of two-week old puppies and the proud parents, grateful for neo-natal and post-natal checkups. A young lady named Lily, cuddling 10-week-old Beethoven said, “It’s hard for some families to stay afloat. This is a huge help because [our pets] are part of our family.” Mary and her daughter, Angel, came from Cameron with Monster, Diesel, and Speckles. “We don’t have money to do anything,” Mary said through tears. “Y’all don’t know what a blessing this is to us.”
Shannon Chestnut drove an hour and a half with three rescue cats and Gracie, her boxer rescued from a puppy mill. A disabled veteran and single mother of two young children, Chestnut said, “I believe in ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’ so I want everybody to get a wellness overview and update their vaccines.” One of her cats, Maggie, is a precious companion to her autistic son. “Every night she runs in his room, jumps on the bed, and waits for him to settle in. My son bonds better to animals than he does to people. To be here means peace of mind.”
Donors Help DEGA Step Up Its Game
One highly anticipated aspect of DEGA’s services is surgery. Gessner’s goal is to continue offering pop-up clinics, but also add in free surgery that includes spay/neuter clinics. DEGA has won some small grants and they partner with businesses that hold events and donate the proceeds to DEGA. The rest is in the hands and hearts of individual donors. Thanks to fall and winter fundraisers, Gessner raised enough money to purchase a trailer that she and her husband are outfitting to be a surgical unit that can be towed behind their camper van. “We can do long-distance clinics and have somewhere to stay and even help some of the animals recover if we have to keep them overnight.”
So generous has been the outpouring of support that she was also able to purchase a surgical monitor, autoclave, anesthesia machine, surgical instruments, pulse oximeter, oxygen concentrator, IV fluid pumps, a warm air system, and other equipment needed for a surgical setting. “I’ve been surprised by all the support—people who don’t even know me!” Gessner said.
At press time, DEGA had celebrated its one-year milestone, held 28 field clinics in eight counties with the help of 66 volunteers, traveled over 1,000 miles, and provided free care to more than 1,100 pets who would otherwise not have had access to a veterinarian. During the snowy weeks of January and February, Gessner and the DEGA team went a step further to supply cold-weather gear along with propane heaters to a homeless family living in the woods with their dog. Compassionate donors and volunteers then made it possible for the family—and their dog—to spend several weeks in a pet-friendly hotel, out of the frigid nighttime temperatures.
For DEGA, it’s all in a day’s work. “We do the best medicine we can,” Gessner humbly concludes.
Do you know someone who could benefit from DEGA’s services? Do you work with an organization that could sponsor a clinic? Are you interested in volunteering? Go to degamobilevetcare.org. There you will find an online contact form as well as a link to an application to use to apply for assistance.
To donate for much-needed supplies, visit degamobilevetcare.org. Follow DEGA on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to learn where their next clinic will be, how to participate in a fundraiser, and see photos of the precious pets being helped by this one-of-a-kind organization.
