On a bright Saturday morning in San Francisco’s Hunters Point neighborhood, a line formed outside the basketball court across from the 1030 Oakdale Avenue Community Center as San Francisco SPCA staff, volunteers, and community partners prepared for the day’s Mobile Vaccine Clinic. Held monthly and rotating between Bayview, Hunters Point, and the Tenderloin, these free clinics bring preventative veterinary care directly to neighborhoods across San Francisco.
Dogs of every size weaved through the crowd, greeting one another with wagging tails, curious sniffs, and a few barks. Some dogs arrived in strollers, and others sat calmly on their guardians’ laps in the bleachers surrounding the basketball court or peeked out from carriers slung over shoulders like baby harnesses. A few brave cats arrived in carriers or cradled in their guardians’ arms.
The crowd itself reflected the city around it: families with young children, seniors, longtime neighbors, couples, and first-time pet guardians from many different backgrounds, all gathered for the same reason. They love their pets and want to keep them healthy.
As attendees checked in, staff and volunteers handed out numbers and organized the flow of the clinic. Inside tented care stations, veterinary teams, including trained volunteers, prepared vaccines, flea and tick preventatives, medical supplies, and information about other services available through the SF SPCA. Near the exit, there was an additional tent with free leashes, collars, and pet food for guardians who needed them.
As the event began, everything moved with a sense of calm organization and patience. At each station, veterinary staff and volunteers assessed pets for vaccines and flea treatment while helping families connect with SF SPCA programs and resources to support their ongoing veterinary care needs. Conversations ranged from vaccine schedules and nutrition information to grooming resources, skin concerns, and how to access free or low-cost spay/neuter appointments at the SF SPCA Spay/Neuter Clinic.
For many families attending these clinics, they are about far more than vaccines alone. They are opportunities to access veterinary care in a welcoming space close to home. It is a chance to ask questions without judgment, connect with care providers, and build relationships that lead to ongoing support for both pets and their people.
“What I love most about our clinics is seeing the sense of community grow,” says Leti Luna, Senior Community Engagement Specialist at the SF SPCA. “People come back and remember us, and we remember them too. You get to watch puppies grow up, see families return, and know they trust us when they need care for their pets.”
Across all our clinics, we see neighbors connecting with one another, organizations working side by side, and pet guardians receiving support that helps make caring for their companions feel more possible. At a time when many families face rising costs and limited access to veterinary care, our Mobile Vaccine Clinics demonstrate an important idea: loving and caring for a pet should not feel out of reach.
Building systems, not just services
For decades, veterinary care has often been structured as a straight path: preventative care leads to primary care, which leads to specialty treatment when needed.
But real life rarely works that neatly.
A pet guardian might first seek care during an emergency. Someone might hear about services from a friend or neighbor. Transportation challenges, work schedules, language barriers, and financial uncertainty can all shape how and when people access veterinary care. At the SF SPCA, we believe that these challenges are not a lack of love or commitment from pet guardians. It is the result of fragmented veterinary care options that can be difficult to navigate.
“Access to care is a structural issue, not an individual failing,” says Jessica Bogosian, RVT, Senior Director of Community Medicine Operations. “As a profession, we’ve spent a lot of time designing services. What we really need to design are systems that communities can easily access, navigate, and trust.”
This philosophy shapes every aspect of the SF SPCA Community Medicine Program, which includes our Spay/Neuter Clinic, Community Veterinary Clinic (CVC), and Mobile Vaccine Clinics. Bringing this work to life are the dedicated staff and volunteers who help connect people to the care and resources they need.
These subdepartments work together as connected entry points into a system of care that includes our full-service hospital, allowing families to access support in ways that make sense for their lives. The goal is not simply to provide a service in a moment of need. It is to create lasting pathways into care that feel welcoming and sustainable over time.
Instead of expecting people to fit into a one-size-fits-all model, our goal is to strengthen a flexible system of care alongside the communities we serve. Our Community Ambassadors help connect pet guardians with resources while building trust through ongoing outreach and conversation. Mobile Vaccine Clinics bring preventative care directly into neighborhoods. Fixed-cost and subsidized veterinary services help reduce financial barriers. Referral pathways connect families with more advanced care when needed.
Sometimes, reducing barriers can be as practical as helping someone schedule transportation to an appointment. Other times, it means offering care in spaces that already feel familiar.
Care built with community
Today, our regular Mobile Vaccine Clinics rotate between three San Francisco neighborhoods: Bayview, Hunters Point, and the Tenderloin. This structure reflects a community-driven approach focused on strengthening long-term partnerships and responding to each neighborhood’s unique needs.
Rather than operating as standalone events, the clinics are built in collaboration with trusted community-based organizations already deeply connected to the people they serve.
In Hunters Point, the SF SPCA partners with City of Dreams, a neighborhood organization focused on mentorship and youth development for children living in low-income housing communities. By hosting clinics in a gathering space already used by local families, the partnership helps expand access while strengthening community connections.
“Partnering with the San Francisco SPCA has been an incredible asset to Hunters Point West Oakdale,” says Khendria “Miss Kay” Williams of City of Dreams. “Their compassion, dedication, and hands-on support not only uplift the well-being of our community’s animals but also strengthen the bond between residents and their pets. They are truly a valued and trusted partner in building a healthier, more caring community.”
In Bayview, the SF SPCA partners with Southeast Family Health Center, a longstanding healthcare provider that has served the Bayview-Hunters Point community since 1979. Known for its culturally responsive approach, the center provides integrated care tailored to each patient’s needs.
During one recent clinic, a pet guardian shared that he had once brought his children to Southeast Family Health Center for their immunizations. Now, years later, he brings his dog to the same location for veterinary care. Today, one of his daughters even works there as a social worker.
In the Tenderloin, clinics are held in partnership with St. Anthony Foundation on the Golden Gate Greenway. For decades, St. Anthony’s has served as a vital community anchor, offering meals, healthcare, clothing, recovery services, and other essential support to neighbors experiencing homelessness and poverty.
“At St. Anthony’s, we believe whole-person care means supporting every aspect of a person’s well-being, including the relationships with pets that bring comfort and stability,” says Laura Flannigan, Chief Operating Officer at St. Anthony Foundation. “By bringing veterinary care directly into the neighborhood, the SF SPCA is helping remove barriers and making it easier for families to keep their pets healthy.”
Our partnerships are also supported by the SF SPCA Community Ambassadors, whose work focuses on community outreach, building relationships, listening to community needs, providing free vaccines in homes, and connecting pet guardians to additional services, such as spay/neuter. Launched in 2024 thanks to a grant from Maddie’s Fund®, a Duffield Foundation. Our Community Ambassador Program hires and trains trusted members of the community to help local families navigate and access veterinary care.
Sustaining care for the future
Expanding access to care at this scale requires more than medical supplies and mobile equipment. It requires longterm investment in the people, partnerships, and systems that allow these clinics to grow alongside the communities they serve. Instead of expecting people to fit into a one-size-fits-all model, our goal is to strengthen a flexible system of care alongside the communities we serve.
This future is strengthened through the generosity of longtime SF SPCA supporters Merrilee Harris, Leesa Miao, and Martin Romo, whose recent commitments will help fund Mobile Vaccine Clinics across San Francisco for years to come. Their support is complemented with core vaccines donated by Petco Love, which help ensure that cost is not a barrier to preventative veterinary care.
As the need for accessible veterinary care continues to grow, philanthropic support plays a critical role in helping the SF SPCA expand these efforts and reach more neighborhoods across the city.
This support ensures that more families can access preventative veterinary care close to home. Just as important, their investment supports a broader vision of care that connects outreach, education, spay/neuter services, and ongoing veterinary support.
“I’ve been continually moved by the devotion our attendees show their pets and the gratitude they have for these services,” says Harris as she reflects on the impact of the Mobile Vaccine Clinics. “They arrive early and wait patiently because they care so deeply about their companions. And the dogs and cats seem to know that it is an event especially for them, which it is!”
Harris has attended several clinics in the Tenderloin and recalls one moment in particular that stayed with her. A woman was waiting in line with her dog, who was sitting comfortably in a folding chair. Harris struck up a conversation with her, and the woman explained that she had adopted the dog as a companion for her autistic son. Her son had been anxious about having the dog near his feet, so his mom put the dog up on a chair to bring them closer to eye level. This simple change put her son at ease, and the boy and dog quickly bonded. The chair became the dog’s happy place, and the dog became her son’s closest companion. “It was such a beautiful illustration of how people and their pets build very important connections,” Harris says.
Creating pathways to ongoing care
For many families, attending a Mobile Vaccine Clinic is not the end of their journey with the SF SPCA. It is the beginning of an ongoing relationship.
At each clinic, families can access additional services to help their pets stay healthy. These include referrals to the CVC, scheduling for low-cost and subsidized spay/neuter surgeries, and connections to more advanced medical care when needed.
Together, these programs help create a flexible system of care that meets families at different points in their lives and circumstances.
Spay/neuter services are a cornerstone of that system. In addition to supporting the long-term health of pets, spay/neuter helps prevent unplanned litters and reduces overpopulation that can contribute to shelter intake. For families facing financial challenges, access to affordable spay/neuter services can be a critical step in keeping pets healthy and in their homes.
The SF SPCA’s approach focuses on providing high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter surgeries while making these services accessible to as many pet guardians as possible. Thanks to donor support, in the last fiscal year, 70% of surgeries performed through our Community Medicine Program were fully or partially subsidized, helping ensure that cost is not the deciding factor in whether a pet receives important preventative care. Through pay-what-you-can and subsidized options, we work to reduce the everyday obstacles that can prevent families from seeking care in the first place.
“Reducing friction often yields greater results than simply expanding services,” says Bogosian. “When care feels approachable and connected, families are more able to access the support they need for their pets.”
That same philosophy shapes the care offered at the CVC, located in San Francisco’s Excelsior neighborhood, an area that has historically had very limited access to veterinary services.
The CVC provides affordable veterinary care on a fixed pricing structure designed to make basic primary care more accessible. While some pet guardians first connect with the SF SPCA through a Mobile Vaccine Clinic or Community Ambassadors, others might enter the system through the CVC itself. The programs are intentionally designed to work together, creating multiple pathways to care depending on a family’s needs.
A family might first visit a neighborhood clinic for vaccines, schedule a spay surgery a few weeks later, and eventually receive follow-up care through the CVC. Another pet guardian might begin with the CVC and later be referred for more advanced treatment at the SF SPCA Hospital. The path to care is not always linear, and the system is designed with that flexibility in mind.
One example is Matilda, a beloved Pomeranian and regular patient at the CVC.
When Matilda developed pyometra, a serious uterine infection, SF SPCA veterinary staff quickly coordinated her care and brought her to our Spay/Neuter Clinic for urgent surgery. After the surgery was a success, Matilda’s guardian returned with her other dog for a preventative spay surgery and encouraged her neighbor to schedule a neuter appointment for their dog as well. What began as a crisis became an ongoing relationship built on trust and access.
You can read more about Matilda’s story here.
The power of care
By creating clearer pathways between services and reducing barriers along the way, the SF SPCA is strengthening San Francisco’s broader system of care for pets and people alike. Across San Francisco, that system is taking shape one relationship at a time. It can be seen in a family arriving at a Mobile Vaccine Clinic in a convenient neighborhood space. In a Community Ambassador helping connect a pet guardian with resources. In a volunteer who spends their weekends helping neighbors access care. In a veterinarian coordinating follow-up care that feels manageable. In community partners working side by side to support the people and pets they serve every day.
Together, these moments form something larger than any one program.
They reflect a belief that access to veterinary care should not depend on how easily someone can navigate complicated systems, overcome transportation barriers, or afford unexpected costs alone. They reflect the idea that strong communities are built through connection and trust.
For more than 150 years, the SF SPCA has evolved alongside the city of San Francisco. Today, through our Community Medicine Program and broader access to care efforts, we continue to reimagine what veterinary care can look like when it is built with communities, not simply delivered to them.
The result is healthier pets, stronger human-animal bonds, reduced shelter intake, and communities where care is easier to reach, easier to trust, and easier to sustain. That is the power of care.
This story originally appeared in the summer 2026 issue of Our Animals magazine. Download a copy to read more.