Vet wants to help dogs in remote Labrador communities

A Grand Falls-Windsor veterinarian is heading north to help Hopedale dogs.

Maxina Hunt von Herbing has started the non-profit North Atlantic Remote Veterinary Services. She's working tospay, neuter and vaccinate dogs in remote areas of Labrador,starting withHopedale in September.

Like a lot of communities accessible only be air or sea or snowmobile in the winter Hopedale has no veterinary clinic, and hasn't seen a visit from a vet since 2012.

Hunt von Herbing told Labrador Morning on Tuesday that when dog populations aren't controlled, the results can be devastating.

No visit since 2012

The vet said dogs will become overpopulated, and you'll find strays living out of town dumps.

The only way to control that population is with a dog shoot, and sometimes that balanced is tipped when somebody gets hurt.- Maxina Hunt von Herbing

"The only way to control that population is with a dog shoot, and sometimes that balance is tipped when somebody gets hurt or something happens," said Hunt von Herbing.

In 2013 in Natuashish a dog shoot was declared after a child was bitten. Butdog lovers in Nova Scotia intervened toorganizea rescue that saw dozens of dogs shipped out to adoptive homes.

• StrayNatuashishdogs to get new foster homes

That's an uncommon solution for a common problem, said Hunt von Herbing.

"When such heroic events occur, it's once in a blue moon," she said. "The dog population has to have basic control there, as opposed to shipping dogs out...finding homes for dogs is very difficult when there's just too many of them."

As grim as the prospect of shooting dogs en masse is, the alternative leaving stray dogs alone is no better.

Dogs become feral or die

"The successful ones become feral and puppies starve and freeze in the snow or get eaten by other dogs," said Hunt von Herbing. "When it gets bad it can be quite devastating."

Hunt von Herbing says her organization needs $15,000-$20,000 to be set up with equipment and supplies to get off the ground this year, with a spay/neuter clinic scheduled in Hopedale for Sept. 12. To that end, she's set up a GoFundMe page.

"I have a fraction of that, so it's still going to take a lot more, and there's not much time, there's two months left to accumulate this. It's a lot of preparation and a lot of work to do," she said. "So I'm appealing to the general public to help out."