Dr. Katie Emerson has joined Pets Alive Animal Sanctuary as its full-time veterinarian. She will spend most of her time at the medical clinic in its Elmsford, NY, location but will also be at its Middletown, NY, location once a week and will spend two weeks in August at its Bed & Breakfast Rescue Sanctuary in Puerto Rico.

Emerson received a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt and her doctor of veterinary medicine degree from Cornell. Her interests include high-volume spay/neuter, trap-neuter-return for feral cats, population and infectious disease management, and feline medicine and behavior. She is also a passionate member of the no-kill movement. “I’ve had an interest in shelter medicine ever since I volunteered for several rescue groups in college,” she says. “I’m excited to be joining one of the leaders of the no-kill movement in Pets Alive.”

Kerry Clair, president of Pets Alive, says the addition of an onsite veterinarian five days a week was the logical next step for the organization financially, and “a huge benefit to our animals.”

The Elmsford clinic currently assists low-income families with their pets’ medical needs and offers low cost spay/neuter for the community. There are plans to open a Pets Alive medical clinic next year in Middletown, and a medical clinic is already underway in Puerto Rico.

One of the oldest and largest no-kill organizations in the country, Pets Alive relies solely on private donations to meet its financial needs. To learn more, visit PetsAlive.org, PetsAliveWest.org and PetsAlivePR.org.