Dr. Hurley began her career as an animal control officer in 1989 at the Santa Cruz SPCA, a private shelter providing field and sheltering services to the community in Santa Cruz, CA. She enjoyed the job more than she ever could have imagined, especially the feeling that she was able to help people take better … Continue reading “Kate Hurley, DVM, Program Director”

Throughout her KSMP career, Dr. Karsten has helped to identify and implement best practice protocols and capacity for care models at shelters across the United States and Canada. Initially this was done primarily through onsite shelter consultations.  Dr. Karsten’s recent work has focused on leading shelter medicine Bootcamps, concentrated six-week courses for shelter leaders. The Bootcamps combine … Continue reading “Cynthia (Cindy) Karsten, DVM, Director of Outreach”

In her work for the Koret Shelter Medicine Program, Dr. Wagner has helped shelters from Florida to Vancouver. Her contributions have ranged from Capacity for Care (C4C) calculations and population health to full facility design consultations. After initially fashioning them by hand, Dr. Wagner oversaw the design and manufacture of the Cat Portal for the Koret Shelter Medicine Program.  Over 5,000 … Continue reading “Denae Wagner, DVM, Facility Design Veterinarian”

We’re proud of the adaptability and resourcefulness being shown by so many California shelters in response to the coronavirus pandemic. At the beginning of April 2020, we began convening a weekly zoom call to help in the sharing of ideas, processes, and protocols being implemented and tested throughout the state. The group that arose from … Continue reading “CASCAR: California Animal Shelter COVID Action Response”

Karol has loved animals ever since she was a young neighborhood pet sitter in her hometown of Bethel, Connecticut so she was thrilled to join the KSMP Team in February 2021 as the Deputy Director. She comes to us from the Aging and Disability Business Institute at the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a) based in Washington D.C., where she served as the … Continue reading “Karol Tapias, Deputy Director”

Dr. Stacy Kraus’s first introduction to animal shelters occurred when she started teaching basic obedience to shelter dogs, making them better candidates for adoption. She quickly realized she wanted to do more for shelter animals and decided the best way to achieve that goal was to attend veterinary school and focus on shelter medicine. Dr. Kraus graduated from Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine in … Continue reading “Stacy Kraus, DVM, Chief of Service, YCAS”