024: Confronting the Vet Shortage with Cheri Storms

In this episode of United We Spay, host Stacy LeBaron welcomes Cheri Storms, Executive Director of Pet Friendly Services of Indiana and Chair of the United Spay Alliance Vet Shortage Task Force. With a statewide view of spay/neuter services and firsthand experience navigating the challenges of veterinary access, Cheri brings clarity and urgency to a national crisis: the veterinary shortage threatening spay/neuter capacity across the U.S.

Cheri shares how the vet shortage—once a simmering concern—boiled over post-pandemic, leaving shelters, rescues, and pet owners scrambling. She explains how task force initiatives like high-quality, high-volume "wet labs" are training veterinarians in the field, and highlights mobile units, voucher systems, and mega clinics as creative workarounds to increase access in "vet deserts."

Listeners will hear how states like Colorado and New Hampshire are pioneering mid-level practitioner roles and licensing foreign-trained vets—changes that could reshape the profession and expand public health services for animals. Cheri also addresses funding gaps, the vital role of spay/neuter financial assistance programs, and how communities can support more surgeries, more quickly.

If you care about animal welfare, public health, or the future of veterinary medicine, this episode provides a clear-eyed look at where we're heading—and what we must do to fix it.

In this episode, you will hear:

• The surprising truth about new vet school grads and their surgical skills

• How wet labs and mid-level practitioners could help solve the vet crisis

• Real talk: Why voucher programs work—and why they're underfunded

• What's working in Indiana: mobile units, mega clinics & community buy-in

• How states are stepping in with innovative laws to address the shortage

• Why early spay/neuter (Feline Fix by Five) still matters more than ever

Resources from this Episode

• Pet Friendly Services of Indiana

• United Spay Alliance – Feline Fix by Five

• Public Vet

• Vet Shortage Task Force

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