browndog2

Seventeen Years of Brown Dog Foundation

carol@browndogfoundation.org (Carol Smock) — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 22:40:11 GMT

The Anniversary Post, a day late...

Each year I spend time reflecting on how much we've accomplished with this labor of love called Brown Dog Foundation. To think that after 17 years we're still one of the most respected agencies is probably what I'm most proud of. To know that we continue to provide assistance to families who need us most is vitally important to me.

This year, we celebrate receiving our first major Grant. The Candis Stern Foundation has gifted us $22,000 to achieve our Mission! This is a miracle as it finally affords us the ability to the work we need to do in a shorter amount of time. The Board agreed to allocate more than half of these funds to our VetBilling Program, so we are able to recoup some of the money we grant, which helps us stabilize our Program for the long-term.

Earlier this year, I lost my fourth pet to the dreaded cancer. Each of them experienced a different type and with each of them, I experienced a different decision-process thrust upon me. As I revisit each situation, I am amazed by how much I've learned. With Chocolate Chip, the original Brown Dog, his cancer recurrence happened while I was unemployed and could not provide the care he would have needed to attempt to save him. Perhaps the universe knew this because it turned out that his recurrence was end-stage and nothing we could do would actually have saved him. Still, without the help of a dear friend, I could not have afforded the testing that told me this, which is also what inspired me to create Brown Dog Foundation.

Goldie Goo Goo Cluster experienced crisis quickly with a ruptured splenic tumor during the weekend. Emergency surgery was the only thing that could have saved her, but at 13.5 years old, it was a major risk and a significant cost, $3-5,000. At the time, I did not have the money available to me, so I made the decision to end her suffering with her in my arms and surrounded by all of the people who loved her most. We sang to her. I cradled her gently and told her I would never forget her. That one haunts me. She is the only pet I've ever had to euthanize because I couldn't afford treatment that could have actually saved her. It would be a few years before I learned the term "Economic Euthanasia" and exactly what that means. It would become a phrase that cuts me deeply each time I hear it.

In 2017, Toffee Nut was diagnosed with an aggressive Mast Cell cancer in his lower back. We operated, but it came back. So, we applied Eastern & Western Medicinal approaches - a little chemo and some Mushroom / Chinese Herb Therapies. He lived a reasonably happy and comfortable 7 months before succumbing to that dreaded disease. I spent more than $35,000 over the course of those months attempting to save him because I could, postponing my Birthday Trip to France. I have no regret.

In 2022, Beignet was diagnosed with an inoperable tumor in the Retroperitoneum. Surgery was not an option, but Radiation had shown some level of success with certain types of tumors in this region. Without performing the expensive diagnostics to determine if this tumor was of that type, I proceeded with Radiation to see if it would work. We onboarded a CBD / THC protocol and ultimately also added Chinese Herb support. Again, I spent more than $30,000 over the course of 5 months attempting to save her because I had the means... but it didn't work.

I sometimes wonder if I went over-board attempting to save Toffee Nut and Beignet because I wasn't able to save Goldie? But I know deep down that I would have spent that money regardless simply because I had it... because I could. My pets are my family. They are my life... my children. So, when it's time to save their life, I will do whatever I can. I'll do everything to avoid Economic Euthanasia.

This is why it's critical that organizations like Brown Dog Foundation exist. No one should be forced to make the decision I made with Goldie. And, that is why, every day, for seventeen years, I get up... open our database, process through the requests and help as many people as we can. It's never enough. And, we always have to say "no" more than we get to say "yes." But at least we're doing something.

Our goal is to eradicate the term Economic Euthanasia. Will you join us?

No good deed goes unpunished...

Mon, 07 Nov 2022 18:17:43 GMT

Whatever happened to working together?

Somewhere along the way, the Veterinary community has determined that the only way out of their historically poor business management practices is to punish the good non-profits. In the past week, Brown Dog Foundation has received 5 "refusals" from Veterinary Clinics despite our willingness and financial position to help them save the lives of their client's pets. What is motivating this trend, you ask? Greed.

The primary reason Vet Clinics across the country are refusing Brown Dog's programs is that they demand all payments be made by credit card on the day services are rendered. This is not a new phenomena within the Veterinary community, but it is a surprising turn of events when aimed at established, well-regarded 501c3 agencies. There are a few things Veterinary Clinics need to comprehend as it relates to this practice...

Non-profits do not exist to keep your for-profit business "in the black" -- the role of a non-profit is to subsidize care for those who cannot financially access that care. Thanks to the increased popularity of Crowdfunding, Clinics now expect that non-profits should give 100% of the retail rate, which ethically violates the 501c3 tax code.
Just because one clinic defaults on their commitment to you does not mean we all will -- Brown Dog has existed for 16 years. We've always paid by business check within 7-10 days of a finalized invoice. We've never not paid a commitment we made. Yet, because some rescue groups and pet owners have committed to pay something and failed, Clinics are now punishing everyone. And, they feel justified in doing so because "you can't pay for your groceries 7 days later, by business check."

It seems some Veterinarians and Clinics are missing the point... A registered 501c3 in this space is not "buying groceries." We exist to serve the community at large - not just keeping Clinics flush with cash. We are established to sit between the service provider and the beneficiary to find a way to bridge the gap between need and fulfillment so that everyone invests and no one is carrying the full burden.

I knew 8 years ago that the space was going to change given the bombardment of crowdfunding sites aimed at animal lovers. I believed that Brown Dog Foundation may be grandfathered in because of how diligently we have managed our Programs and because of our single focus on running a business that pays its way. We have avoided growing too quickly and we've never committed to pay something we did not have funds set aside to pay.

Unfortunately, our good deed is being punished. Brown Dog will now need to rethink our program completely because the industry wants "easy money." There are 2 approaches we can consider:

We will be forced to establish a network of clinics who will work with our program as is, which means, we are fundraising specifically to keep these clinics "in the black." When we get big enough, the IRS will tell us that violates the spirit of 501c3 and is essentially tax-fraud. We will be forced to surrender our 501c3 to another program already established using the 2nd approach.
Brown Dog will need to simply grant a token, flat amount that does not fully resolve the situation, leaving the pet owner to figure out how to come up with the balance. This is how Frankie's Friends, RedRover and most other programs already work because there is too much resistance by Vet Clinics in general to think outside the box.

Personally, I'm sickened by the conversations I've had throughout the last week. I've experienced a clinic unwilling to write off $300 of a $3000 procedure in order for our Program to save their client's life, opting instead for that client to take on a Care Credit debt they have no financial resources to pay. I've experienced an emergency clinic unwilling to even see a very sick dog because our $150 toward the cost of the visit would be mailed by check rather than run on a credit card immediately. Today, I was told by a doctor that she refuses to see an existing patient because we pay invoices by check.

I'm sickened enough to consider shutting down the very program I have invested 16 years of my life building. As well, I'm not sure I'll ever adopt another pet. The vast majority of this industry has become solely focused on money and has no real desire to solve the very real problems presented as a result of economic instability for the working class.

If you're a Vet in this industry who understands the role a non-profit is supposed to play, please reach out to me. I know some exist and we have a good repository of Clinics who will work with our Program. I can be reached at carol@browndogfoundation.org.