Check out how things went in Grand Turk!
We performed 95 FREE spay and neuter surgeries and 108 FREE wellness exams (including vaccinations, heartworm and tick testing, and heartworm, flea, and tick prevention) in 5 days!
PROJECTS
We'd love to keep you informed of all our missions so check back often to follow our progress.
Remember, your support is what makes it possible to carry out missions and change the lives of animals in need!
Meet our St. Maarten team...
Dr. Susan Burkhart, DVM
Jennifer Weitzel
Veterinary Assistant
Dr. Jean Heppner, DVM
Michelle Rivers, LVT
John Weitzel
Field Team
Adam Moyer
Field Team
Dr. Christine Tomlin, DVM
Chelsea Miller, LVT
Annie Carter
Field Team
Bertha Bishop
Photojournalist
PROJECT GRAND TURK
Our first mission to help the homeless dogs and cats on the island of Grand Turk has been completed successfully and we can't WAIT to share all the details!
A team made up of three veterinarians, three veterinary technicians and numerous volunteers just spent a week on the island of Grand Turk and, in partnership with the TCSPCA and an amazing local community, was able to help 300 dogs and cats...oh, and one turtle!
The Turks & Caicos is a tropical Atlantic archipelago located 575 miles southeast of Miami, Florida, and 75 miles north of the Dominican Republic. This beautiful British Overseas Territory, which is made up of seven islands, is home to some of the world's most beautiful beaches, luxury resorts, shops, and restaurants. Amidst the beauty, hiding in plain sight, are also hundreds of stray dogs and cats known as Potcakes, many of them ill and starving.
Their devastating situation inspired 4 Leaf Rover's first mission, a five-day spay and neuter clinic on the island of Grand Turk, where our founder Dr. Burkhart previously observed the most need. Five days were certainly not enough to help all the animals on the island, but it did allow us to treat 300 of them, as well as interact with a beautiful community that we found to be kind, welcoming, and hardworking.
In partnership with the TCSPCA and about a dozen volunteers, we put our hearts and souls into making a difference, but we know it will take more. This is only the beginning.
About Grand Turk
Grand Turk is one of the Turks and Caicos Islands. Its main revenue is from tourism but since the onset of Covid-19, it has been severely impacted. The animals have suffered greatly as well, and the number of homeless animals, dogs in particular, is very disturbing.
There is NO veterinary care on the island, with the exception of a vet who flies in once every two weeks for the day. The island is only 7 square miles, yet has HUNDREDS of homeless strays. During Dr. Burkhart's visit to this island in November 2021, there were regularly 10 or more dogs living and sleeping in the sand outside the room she rented.
She fed the dogs pictured here every morning and night and was so sad when she left, wondering where they would get their next meal. She promised them she'd return, and would bring help when she did!
The donations received here will be used to offer FREE spays, neuters, and medical care to every dog and cat in need on this island. In addition, we are trying to collect donations of flea and tick treatments, heartworm prevention, antibiotics, pain medication, dewormers, collars, etc. to truly meet the needs of these vulnerable animals.
Please help Dr. Burkhart keep her promise to these forgotten dogs. They are counting on us. If we all help just a little, great things can be accomplished!