How much of a difference can two shelter medicine interns make? When they’re Dr. Shawndulynn James and Dr. Juliana Perez Pulido, and they have both the UF Shelter Medicine Program and Petco Love at their backs, the sky’s the limit.
Responding to Urgency: The Nonprofit Veterinary Shortage
The national veterinary shortage is having an especially large impact on animal shelters and nonprofit veterinary clinics. That was the conclusion of a study of more than 200 shelters and nonprofit veterinary clinics across the country. Last year, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) specifically called out shelters as one of the veterinary sectors suffering the most from the shortage.
With the support of a 3-year, $510,000 training grant from Petco Love, the two recently-graduated veterinarians are the latest pair to enter an accelerated one-year internship that will uniquely outfit them to meet this challenge.
Dr. James and Dr. Perez Pulido were selected for this year’s program from dozens of applicants from around the world. Together they are being mentored through a series of hands-on clinical rotations in a variety of Florida shelters and community access-to-care clinics, along with a comprehensive academic program.
The internship combines in‐shelter rotations with courses by UF faculty that together provide training in both individual and population-level veterinary care, veterinary forensic medicine, shelter consultations, diagnosis and management of disease outbreaks in shelters, and large‐scale field responses to disasters involving animals, including natural disasters and mass seizures of abused or neglected animals.
Interns perform their rotations at both public and private shelters and community care clinics throughout Florida. “Participating shelters have advanced Shelter Medicine programs led by full-time shelter veterinarians, most of whom are alumni of the Shelter Medicine Program at UF,” said Shelter Medicine internship coordinator Dr. Cynda Crawford, Fredrica Saltzman Endowed Professorship Chair in Shelter Medicine. “This helps interns see how the principles of Shelter Medicine can be utilized at shelters with all levels of intake, resources, and community support.”
Meet Dr. Shawndulynn James
Dr. Shawndulynn James grew up in Kentucky, where she attended a vocational high school centered on a combination farm and veterinary clinic. “That fostered my love for animals and ultimately allowed me and helped me make the decision that I wanted to become a veterinarian,” she said.
After graduating from the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, she applied for the UF internship program, seeking to advance her education in Shelter Medicine. Her inspiration for her career direction? A cat named Toby.
“I was going through some things during high school, some personal things, and my mom thought it was best that I have a companion animal,” Dr. James recollected. “So my mom allowed me to adopt a cat after growing up in a home where animals weren’t really allowed. I love him dearly; he is 11 years old today. And I just was thinking to myself recently, now that I’m in this internship, that my love for Shelter Medicine actually started with him.”
A year before Dr. James was about to graduate vet school, she went overseas to Greece to help with TNR of community cats. That, combined with some rotations she took in her fourth year, solidified for her that her future lay in Shelter Medicine, leading her to apply for the UF internship program.
Dr. James found her rotation at Tallahassee Animal Services particularly impactful. “On my first day, I participated in a ride-along with the animal control officers, which provided me with an in-depth view of their work,” she said. “I was impressed by the level of transparency at the shelter, as I had the opportunity to attend all staff meetings and presentations with Dr. Rachel Barton, where I was encouraged to contribute my thoughts.”
During her rotation, she served as the primary surgeon for many routine cat and dog spay and neuter surgeries as well as learning specialty procedures including cystotomy, tail amputation, limb amputation, and how to spay and neuter rabbits.
Another rotation experience Dr. James valued was the presence of an on-staff social worker at the First Coast No More Homeless Pets community clinic in Jacksonville. “This was the first clinic that I had ever worked at that had had a social worker on staff,” she said. “She was always there before you even knew you needed her, whether it was to be there for someone whose pet is going through euthanasia, difficult clients, angry clients, even happy clients who just wanted to chat.”
The social worker wasn’t just there for the clients, however. Dr. James utilized her support as well. “A dog come in who was crashing,” she said. “We started CPR and compressions immediately, and unbeknownst to everyone else in the room, that was the first code I had ever worked.”
After losing her patient, Dr. James found it hard to go back to her day as if nothing had happened. “The social worker recognized that immediately, and offered her services to me. She let me know that even though she knew I was busy at the moment, she was available any time of the day to talk and that she would definitely debrief and be there for me for support.”
Dr. Juliana Perez Pulido’s Journey
Joining Dr. James in this year’s internship is Dr. Juliana Perez Pulido. Born in Colombia, she grew up and attended veterinary school in Montreal, Canada.
When Dr. Perez Pulido got to vet school, she immediately began volunteering at the school’s small animal shelter. “I helped at the shelter for my whole five years of vet school, and then I started working at various shelters around Montreal and Quebec. That’s when I discovered that Shelter Medicine is its own specialty, and not just saving cute little animals.”
Pointing out that there’s a big difference between the theory of medicine she was taught in school and the actual practice of medicine in shelters, she said, “There’s a large population, you’re working with limited resources, you’re working with a small team but with a very large number of animals. You have to figure out how to offer them the best care you can while keeping the population in mind. Seeing how complicated and hard it can be made me want to learn more.”
Her time at Tallahassee Animal Services stood out for Dr. Perez Pulido as well. “Dr. Barton … took the time to explain and discuss various cases and concepts while also allowing me space to grow and learn on my own. It was a great mix of surgical and medical cases, and the team was wonderful.” During her time in Tallahassee, she was able to practice enucleations, amputations, cherry eye surgeries, exploratory laparotomies, advanced gestation spays in large dogs, and a variety of spays/neuters.
“I also got the chance to create multiple health certificates for the transfer of various animals to shelters up north, including some long-term animals with lower adoption potential,” she added. “It was incredibly gratifying to see them be posted up for adoption a couple of days later.”
Dr. Perez Pulido chose UF’s internship program because of the robust experiences and courses it offers. “One of the reasons I chose UF was the challenge of changing places during shelter rotations – all the changing teams and meeting new people. It’s been great everywhere they’ve sent me, they’ve been ready to teach, to welcome me.”
Another highlight of Dr. Perez Pulido’s experience during her internship was being able to use her fluency in three languages, English, Spanish, and French. “I had just started my first rotation in Jacksonville at No More Homeless Pets, and I realized how much of a privilege it is to be able to speak three languages and to communicate with people fluently, to be able to speak with them. Sometimes a rough translation can hash things out when it comes to the medical words, to explain to them that their dog is sick. But to be able to offer that emotional support in someone’s native language, it made me realize just how important that is.”
Embracing a Future in Shelter Medicine
So, what does the future hold for Dr. James and Dr. Perez Pulido? Both intend to utilize their training and experience to help fill the need for skilled shelter veterinarians.
“I definitely plan on continuing to stay in Shelter Medicine,” said Dr. James. “I have loved this internship and I find nothing but joy in it. My job doesn’t feel like a job to me. I come every day not wanting to leave.” Her long-term plan is to work in a shelter and eventually become boarded in Shelter Medicine.
Dr. Perez Pulido is applying to residencies in Shelter Medicine for advanced training leading to specialty board certification.. She’s also considering heading home to Montreal to work in a brand new shelter currently under construction. “I would love to help a shelter with what I’ve learned,” she said.
“Dr. James and Dr. Perez Pulido are poised to make a huge difference in Shelter Medicine,” said Dr. Julie Levy, the Fran Marino Endowed Distinguished Professor of Shelter Medicine Education at UF College of Veterinary Medicine. “The experiences they’ve had during their internship, combined with the skills and dedication they bring to their work, will empower them to be great surgeons, excellent clinicians, and strong leaders. We couldn’t be more proud of these compassionate doctors.”
Are You Our Next Shelter Medicine Intern?
There’s a critical shortage of veterinarians with special expertise in shelter medicine. Our internship program is designed to produce a skilled practitioner well-equipped for shelter practice or to be competitive for a residency program in the shelter medicine specialty.
The UF Internship program is unique in that interns spend approximately half of their time working in a variety of Florida animal shelters and HQHVSN access-to-care veterinary clinics outside of the Gainesville area. During this time, interns will work side-by-side with clinical mentors in a range of organizations, including municipal animal control and nonprofit shelters, urban and rural facilities, and well-funded and resource-scare organizations. By the end of the internship year, interns will be highly skilled in surgery, prepared to join any type of animal shelter as an associate or medical director, and confident in responding to challenges common to Shelter Medicine.
Learn more and apply here through 1/6/25.