NHP vets offer lice, tick doses for wolves

Bryan Ahrens

While dogs and cats are their usual customers that has not stopped the New Hyde Park Animal Hospital from extending its care to wolves.

For the last three years the animal hospital has donated doses of flea and tick medicine to Mission:Wolf, an organization that helps treat wolves in the wild.

“We try to do anything,” said Mara DiGrazia, co-owner at New Hyde Park Animal Hospital. “We wanted to do something out of the box, something for the environment.”

DiGarza said New Hyde Park Hospital has been donating Frontline and Certifect, medicine used to treat fleas and ticks, for the past three years, 

This year, she said, the animal hospital made its largest donation – 259 doses.

DiGrazia said she heard about Mission: Wolf from one of her patients.

“Fleas and ticks can carry parasites,” she said. “You want the animals to be comfortable.”

Mission: Wolf, a non-profit made up of volunteers, has traveled around the country to educate and promote better understanding of the animals, DiGrazia said.

“Small steps can make a difference in the quality of life for animals,” she said in a news release.

Although the wolves are wild, DiGrazia said the organization has trained the wolves to apply the medicine used to treat fleas and ticks. 

“They developed a system in Colorado where they taught the wolves to rub up against a fence,” she said. “They’re able to apply the medication through the fence.

In November, DiGrazia said, she met with Kent Weber, founder and executive of Mission: Wolf at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz where she and the organization presented on wolves.

“It was very nice to be able to present,” she said.

DiGrazia said that the organization plans to reduce its visits around the country but that the hospital will continue to donate its flea medication annually.

“Our hospital staff is greatly rewarded by the satisfaction of helping the animal community whenever we can,” she said.

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