The Virginia Beach (Va.) SPCA has asked PCRM to appeal for any unwanted medical supplies. Many shelters and wildlife rehabilitators are overwhelmed with needy animals and struggle to maintain even marginal equipment supplies. Some resemble MASH units on the edge of combat areas. The Virginia Beach SPCA not only struggles with the never-ending animal crises that occur in every growing metropolitan area, but its location near several military bases also makes it the recipient of animals who are too often abandoned when personnel are reassigned.

Shelters especially need syringes, needles, gauze bandages, bioclusive gel bandages, cotton balls, applicator sticks, tongue depressors, finger splints, disinfectant soap, surgical drapes, disinfectant swabs, sutures, scissors, forceps, hemostats, gloves, saline, and lactated ringers solution, but they will gladly accept anything that will help in their work. Contact your local shelter or the Virginia Beach SPCA, 3040 Holland Rd., Virginia Beach, VA 23456; phone: 757-427-6387.