Dear Friends:

Have you ever vacationed in Mexico? Did you see the stray dogs and cats? I remember strolling along a beautiful beach when a skinny, stray dog ran up to me and begged for food with her big dark eyes. I could tell she’d recently had a litter of pups and appeared to still be nursing. Her ribs showed through her sparse coat of hair and I wished I had a bag of dog food to feed her. Clearly she was very hungry and I wondered, what happened to her pups? Who will take care of them?

Thousands of dogs and cats live in the streets and jungles of Mexico – many die of disease and starvation.

That’s why VIDAS (International Veterinarians Dedicated to Animal Health) formed a team of volunteers to provide Mexico’s rural areas with veterinary services. Vidas is the Spanish word for life, and that’s what the dedicated team of volunteer veterinarians and staff gives to the animals of the communities they visit. The Clinic provides services to sterilize, vaccinate and treat hundreds of dogs and cats in the Yucatan in the spring and fall each year.

Veterinarians, technicians and assistants, volunteer their time and professional services to run the Clinic. They travel to Mexico at their own expense to assist animals in the Yucatan. And let me tell you, working the Clinic is not a day at the beach!

We need your help with purchasing supplies for the Clinic including anesthetics, vaccines, dewormer, suture material, antibiotics and syringes. Many items are gathered in the U.S. as donations, but some items, such as anesthetics and vaccines must be purchased in Mexico.

With every gift of $25 or more we can sterilize, vaccinate and deworm a dog or a cat. Your donation can help end the suffering these animals endure!

Please won’t you help? Your gift can make a big difference reducing the pet overpopulation problem in the Yucatan and can help to end the unnecessary suffering of animals living on beaches, in the streets and jungles. The VIDAS Clinics have helped thousands of animals already. One volunteer described a clinic she worked in.

A local clinician accompanied two Colorado veterinarians and technicians into a remote area. In less than four hours the Mayan medical hut was transformed into a working hospital. Battery operated headlamps were used as the only source of light, electricity was unavailable to the team. Twenty local people came to get their dogs spayed and vaccinated and they brought stray animals from the village. Translators spoke to the people about post op care and educated them about vaccinations.

Please make a contribution today to make the November 2003 Tulum-Clinic a reality. A team of veterinarians and technicians made their commitment to the animals of Tulum for the VIDAS Clinic and with your help, we can purchase the desperately needed supplies to do the work.

Make your tax-deductible gift through the Yucatan Environmental Foundation. The Yucatan Environmental Foundation is the U.S. nonprofit organization of Centro Ecológico Akumal (CEA) that sponsors the VIDAS Clinic fund drive. CEA is a non-profit organization that provides a base for academic studies, environmental education, cultural exchange and tourist activities in Akumal, México; you can visit their web site at www.ceakumal.org.

Thank you for helping the dogs and cats of the Yucatan. Together we can make a difference!

Sincerely,

Lesli Hick, DVM
VIDAS Volunteer
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ If you say YES, I want to save the lives animals by making a tax-deductible contribution to the VIDAS Tulum-Clinic!

Make check payable to:the Yucatan Environment Foundation,
P.O Box 2116, Madison, WI 53701-2116
and please write VIDAS Tulum-Clinic on your check.