COCONUT MUTTS

With lush tropical rainforests and pristine coral reefs, American Samoa could be considered paradise. Beneath the palm trees and along the beaches, island cats and dogs roam. The islands are served by one veterinarian and clinic.

Coconut Mutts is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that was inspired after members of our team spent time living and visiting American Samoa. They witnessed the plight of animals on the island and the limited amount of resources available to address animal rescue and welfare. Under the guidance and compassion of local veterinarian staff, our team found a cause and tried to help however possible. Our team has picked up puppies out of ditches, carried them through airports, cleaned blood from their wounds, given them their medications and comforted them. Some live with us now. Some did not overcome their injuries and are buried under the coconut palms wrapped in lava lavas and nestled amongst picked flowers.

The mission of Coconut Mutts is to improve the standard of care for animals in American Samoa. Through collaboration with America Samoan entities dedicated to animal welfare and as well as using resources available on the US mainland, Coconut Mutts is dedicated to ethical and sustainable programming that benefit not only the animal population of American Samoa, but the communities as well.

Providing basic veterinary services in American Samoa is extremely difficult. Coconut Mutts hopes to help with that. Without sufficient resources, the single, small veterinary clinic struggles to keep up with providing basic preventative and medical care to all animals on the island, including, but certainly not limited, to: dogs, cats, pigs, chickens and wildlife, such as turtles and fruit bats. The clinic has a lot on its plate: providing care to patients, reducing the large population of stray dogs and cats, assisting farmers with animal related issues, trapping and removing animals from public lands, addressing bite cases and providing adoption support.

The goal of Coconut Mutts is to provide enough resources to the clinic to strengthen and improve current operations and to also provide enough resources to create future programs, such as remote island clinics. Currently, our “mainland team” in Seattle works directly with the “island team” at the clinic in American Samoa. We coordinate directly with clinic staff and Dr. Kristen Jensen, to determine what resources they need and, just as crucial, get the resources directly to the clinic. Any donations made to Coconut Mutts is used to directly help the clinic.

Things taken for granted on the mainland, such as hot running water, vehicles that can climb hills and adequate sewage drainage, are what is needed most to improve animal welfare in American Samoa. With these additional resources, Coconut Mutts, in partnership with the clinic and its staff, hope to make life more bearable in an already remote and harsh corner of the US.

When you live on a remote island, you get used to making do. Creative patch jobs are the norm, as is demonstrating enviable patience for delayed shipments and poor weather. The outer islands of Ofu-Olosega and Ta’u are supplied by boat and small planes. The main topic of conversation there consists of when the boats are coming, but people also fish and farm breadfruit, banana, coconut, and pigs for themselves.

Proud of their valorous contributions to US military engagements, on American Samoa, ‘vet’ stands for veteran, not veterinarian. No department stores contain aisles of miniature sweaters and neon-plush squeaky toys. There are no astro-turfed dog parks full of hobnobbing owners and playful pups. In fact, you might not even see anyone taking their dog for a walk. Many dogs and cats on American Samoa take care of themselves. While these animals may be free to go where they please, life on the streets is never easy. In every corner of the islands, dogs soldier on with infected wounds from violent skirmishes, puppies with immune systems weakened by tick-borne diseases perish in the shadows, and fresh litters of kittens cartwheel behind dumpsters, unaware of the hard knocks ahead.

It’s not a good situation for the animals or humans. Walking down the street becomes an exercise in heightened awareness. Everyone knows to keep a rock in their pocket, or at least pretend to throw one at the gamut of intimidating canines who gallop straight for you unencumbered by leash or fence, exhibiting every intention of ripping your face off. Dog bites account for over half of reported injuries on the islands. Native wildlife are negatively effected, too. The unique island bird species here evolved over eons without any land-based predators, and therefore succumb to feral and outdoor domestic pets at an alarming rate. Many people see their first wild segavao, the tiny crayola-colored Blue-crowned Lorikeet, as it is dropped from the mouth of their feline companion on the back doorstep. On a tiny island with nowhere to escape, this threat has grave consequences for entire avian populations.

If you care about the wellbeing of your furry comrades across the sea, please consider donating to support our efforts in making American Samoa a better place for dogs, cats, wildlife, and people. THANK YOU!