University of Arizona Students Champion Pet Care for Domestic Violence Survivors
In an inspiring collaboration, students from the University of Arizona’s College of Veterinary Medicine are working with Purina, Emerge Center Against Domestic Abuse, and the Sister José Women’s Center to provide free veterinary services for pets belonging to community members facing domestic violence and other challenges.
Spearheaded by third-year student Stefanie Contreras, the program will deploy the college’s mobile surgical unit to Reid Park on October 18 for the Footsteps for Healing community walk organized by Emerge. The event will offer free pet wellness checks, vaccinations, and screenings to domestic violence survivors selected by Emerge and Sister José’s, a Tucson nonprofit aiding homeless women. Supplies for the care are being donated by Banfield Pet Hospital, with expectations to treat at least 100 pets during the event.
On the same day, the Wildcats will attend Oro Valley’s Bark in the Park at Steam Pump Ranch. This event will feature pet-themed games, activities, and informational booths and will showcase Purina’s “Courageous Together” statue, which honors survivors and their pets.
Contreras, alongside fellow veterinary students Kayden Shotwell, Michaela Blackmore, and Jordyn Purpura, is organizing these efforts. She also serves as president of the college’s Shelter Medicine Club, which enhances classroom learning with practical experiences in shelter animal care.
Contreras, who also acts as a Purina brand ambassador, was motivated by the plight of domestic abuse survivors who often must choose between their safety and the welfare of their pets. “As future veterinarians, we will have a role in preventing or identifying animal cruelty, or even suspected domestic violence,” Contreras said. “I want to be a part of changing how those animals are treated, because few women’s shelters accept animals, and those that do often require pets to be healthy and vaccinated.”
This initiative traces back to October of last year when Contreras and her clubmates worked with Sister José’s to host a “Purple Leash Picnic” at Catalina State Park. The event aimed to raise awareness and provide free pet care to those in need. The Purple Leash Project, a collaboration between Purina and RedRover, strives to increase the number of pet-friendly domestic violence shelters across the United States.
Since its inception in 2019, the project has funded 59 grants for shelters in 26 states, according to Noa Hefer, brand marketing manager at Purina. “Our mission is to help keep pets and people together, because we know pets are a critical part of the healing process,” she said. “The Purple Leash Project helps break down one of the many barriers faced by survivors of abuse: One in three women and one in four men will suffer abuse in their lifetimes, and nearly half of survivors will delay leaving because they can’t take their pets with them. We want a survivor’s pet to help them to leave a terrible situation.”
Purina was notably impressed by the Wildcats’ efforts last year, prompting them to challenge student ambassadors nationwide to develop unique Purple Leash Project initiatives for their communities. Contreras and her peers not only inspired the competition but also emerged as winners.
“These students have really impressed us with their leadership, strategy and willingness to do a lot of hard work,” Hefer remarked. “They’re already in school with a lot of commitments, and putting together an event like this is a big undertaking. We really do appreciate the culture the college is building by allowing the students to do this type of work. That’s really impressive and says a lot about the University of Arizona College of Veterinary Medicine.”
This year’s Purple Leash Project event will employ the college’s 53-foot mobile surgical unit, equipped with all necessary tools and supplies to conduct free wellness exams, vaccinations, and other treatments. Students will provide veterinary care under the guidance of Dr. Alex Ramirez, senior associate dean for academic progress and faculty affairs.
An essential part of the college’s curriculum, the mobile unit first traversed Arizona in the fall of 2023 and includes facilities for holding animals, medical preparation, basic lab work, and surgeries. This facility will be instrumental during Emerge’s “walk, roll, and stroll” event at Reid Park, which aims to unify the Tucson community in support of violence survivors. “We want to center the survivors of all violence, including sexual assault, gun violence and any other violence that impacts our families,” said Josué Romero, director of community engagement at Emerge. “In order to bring about change and healing to the community, we have to address the root causes that allow violence to exist. At Footsteps for Healing, we want to bring the community together to show all survivors that there are people who will love and care for them.”
While the morning will provide students with practical experience in shelter medicine, the afternoon will focus on community engagement.
“We really want to form a strong relationship with Oro Valley, because that is where our campus is located, and we are a relatively new school,” Contreras noted. “A lot of our students will stay in Arizona, and in Tucson specifically, so fostering a relationship with the local community is very important.”
Contreras’s commitment to animal welfare is set to continue beyond her academic life, as she plans to work at the Pima Animal Care Clinic post-graduation to further her passion for shelter medicine.
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