A nod to nonprofits: Companion Animal Medical Project (CAMP)

From KLCC Studios, this is Oregon on the Record.

I'm Michael Dunn. Most of us have had to answer this question multiple times in our lives, what do you like better, dogs or cats? But what if, especially during a brutally hot day or stunningly cold one, you had to answer this question, what do you want, a roof over your head or your beloved dog or cat? Unfortunately, many people in Central Oregon have to answer that question in one way or another, but their choice either means abandoning their pet or spending another night out of the elements. In our continuing series this week about local nonprofits, We'll bring you the story of a small but mighty nonprofit that works tirelessly to help those living unhoused in central Oregon both hold on to and help keep healthy their beloved pets. The story of Companion Animal Medical Project, or CAMP, is next on Oregon on the Record. Johanna Johnson-Weinberg, the founder and executive director of Companion Animal Medical Project, or CAMP. Johanna, thanks so much for coming on and talking with us.

Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be talking with you.

Yeah, yeah. So, gosh, tell our audience, what is CAMP and what do you do?

Yes. CAMP is a nonprofit here in Central Oregon that and we provide veterinary care and other pet retention services for pet owners experiencing or at risk of homelessness throughout the Tri-County area.

Okay. So you're the founder of this organization. I want you to kind of take us through what led you to begin this program. Looking around in Central Oregon, what was the need like, and how did you try and fill it?

Yes, there was a moment when, and that moment kind of happened, let's see, six years ago, or maybe even a little bit before that, because I worked at our local humane society probably seven, eight years ago, and camp has been around for six years. But the original kind of thought, I guess, was while I was working at the local humane society, I worked back at intake. So every day I... met and talked with pet owners who were having to make the incredibly difficult decision to surrender their animals due to various things, veterinary care, housing, things that were kind of out of their control. And to me, it didn't really make sense that specifically for veterinary care, that just because a family couldn't afford their animal, they would have to surrender it. that animal will then get the care that it needed and then put up for adoption and adopt it out to a new family. So that never really made a whole lot of sense to me. And then, you know, housing is a hot topic, but there was a lot of housing issues too where people couldn't keep their animals. So that idea kind of came a little farther down the line. But I left the Humane Society and I worked at, some other places throughout town and then went to work for a local pet food store. And I was sitting in that interview and said, yes, I would like to take this job and can I do a passion project? And that passion project was doing some type of free veterinary care for our community. We held our first free vaccine clinic in February of 2020 And we held it at Bend Methodist Church here in Bend. And we saw around 30 animals