New Mexico Veterans for Pets

We are at a point in time that demands more than acknowledgment—it demands action, coordination, and the courage to build something that does not yet fully exist. There are moments in the life of a community when we are called to do more than bear witness to suffering—we are called to interrupt it.

This is one of those moments.

Across New Mexico, the quiet crises of veteran suicide and animal abandonment are unfolding side by side. What would it mean—not just emotionally, but structurally—to confront both at once? New Mexico Vets for Pets is more than a program. It is a response. A refusal. A commitment to build something better—something that heals by bringing together the lives we too often overlook.

Please join us in the effort to directly reduce veteran suicide rates, curb pet euthanasia, and build a sustainable model of care.

New Mexico Vets for Pets (NMVP) operates at the intersection of veteran mental health, community stabilization, and animal welfare. Our work is grounded in the recognition that the challenges facing veterans, families, and communities are not isolated—they are interconnected, and they require integrated solutions.

New Mexico has the second-highest veteran suicide rate in the nation, and despite meaningful progress in animal welfare, more than 10,000 dogs and cats were euthanized in shelters across the state last year . At the same time, food insecurity, housing instability, and unmet behavioral health needs continue to impact veterans, low-income families, and unhoused individuals across our communities.

These realities do not exist in isolation. They overlap in ways that traditional systems are not designed to address.

NMVP exists to meet people where they are and to respond to the full scope of need. We serve veterans and animals in need, bringing support directly into unhoused encampments and low-income neighborhoods, where access to services is often limited or nonexistent. Our outreach model is grounded in dignity, consistency, and trust—providing food, supplies, and connection to individuals and families who might otherwise remain unseen.

At this stage of our development, we are especially focused on addressing food insecurity among veterans, low-income families, and unhoused neighbors. Through our partnership with Roadrunner Food Bank, we are working to ensure that essential food resources reach those who need them most. Our efforts extend to families connected to nearby elementary schools, where food insecurity affects not only daily well-being but long-term educational and developmental outcomes.

Food is often the first and most immediate need. By addressing it, we create an entry point for broader stabilization—reducing stress, preventing escalation into crisis, and opening the door to additional support.

What distinguishes NMVP is our recognition that companion animals are not peripheral to this work—they are central to it. For many veterans and individuals experiencing hardship, pets provide emotional regulation, routine, and a sense of purpose that cannot be replicated through traditional services alone. The human-animal bond is a stabilizing force, particularly for those navigating trauma, isolation, and uncertainty.

Yet too often, systems force individuals to choose between their own well-being and the well-being of their animals.

NMVP rejects that false choice.

We provide pet food, supplies, and are actively working to expand access to veterinary care for animals in unhoused and low-income communities. By supporting pets, we support people. By keeping individuals and their animals together, we preserve critical sources of emotional support and stability, while also reducing strain on animal shelters and preventing unnecessary euthanasia.

Our model is not only about service delivery—it is about restoring agency and purpose.

Veterans are not only recipients of support within NMVP; they are active participants in delivering it. Through outreach, distribution, and peer engagement, veterans continue to serve their communities in meaningful ways. This approach reinforces identity, builds connection, and supports mental health through continued service. It transforms assistance into participation and reinforces the value veterans bring to the communities they helped protect.

We also recognize that long-term stability requires more than immediate relief. It requires pathways forward.

NMVP builds stability through training and employment. Our programs are designed to provide temporary employment, skill-building, and hands-on experience for veterans, including opportunities to work with and train companion animals for others . These efforts create bridges to workforce participation, economic stability, and long-term reintegration.

Our work is strengthened through a network of trusted partnerships, including Paws and Stripes, Roadrunner Food Bank, Animal Welfare, Bernalillo County Shelters, Animal Humane, New Mexico Workforce Solutions, the Veterans Integration Center, and the State Office of Veterans Services . These partnerships allow us to operate within a broader ecosystem while maintaining a focused, community-based approach.

Together, we are building something larger than any single program.

NMVP is developing a scalable model of care that integrates service-dog–informed support, behavioral health, outreach services, and workforce development. In alignment with the intent of the PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act, we are working toward the creation of New Mexico’s first coordinated hub for service-dog training, veteran mental health services, and vocational pathways.

This vision is grounded in a simple but powerful idea: that healing, stability, and opportunity are interconnected—and that systems should reflect that reality.

By addressing immediate needs such as food insecurity and access to care, while simultaneously building pathways for training, employment, and long-term support, NMVP is creating a model that responds to both crisis and continuity.

New Mexico Vets for Pets is not simply addressing gaps in service. We are redefining how those services connect. We are building a model that recognizes the full complexity of people’s lives, honors the role of animals in human well-being, and creates opportunities for veterans to continue serving with purpose and dignity.

This is not just a program. It is a commitment—to interrupt suffering, to strengthen communities, and to build a sustainable model of care that meets this moment with clarity, compassion, and action.