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Charleston Daily Mail

Charlotte Ferrell Smith

Dr. Steve Mahnken buzzes about his office caring for an endless stream of patients.

He won't even get paid for many of the cases.

"I don't do it for the money," he said. "It's the right thing to do. It isn't a choice. It needs to be done. Period."

He runs Best Friends Animal Hospital in Winfield, where the office seems a bit chaotic with one dog on the table for surgery, cages filled with others, and several dogs and cats that live on the premises wandering about. A cage in the waiting area is for displaying animals for adoption, but there are more in the back in need of homes. Others arrive regularly.

Mahnken doesn't get paid for many of his cases because he often treats the helpless and homeless. A native of Philadelphia, he was working in Wheeling when he came to the area to kayak three years ago and decided to stay.

While area veterinarians have plenty of traditional customers -- pet owners who bring in their pets for treatment-- they also spend quite a bit of time quietly helping strays animals.

Dr. Lynn Frye helps through two practices, Gateway Animal Hospital in St. Albans and North Gateway Animal Hospital located on the first floor of the Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association. Four doctors alternate between the two locations.

"We work with the shelter," Frye said. "From time to time, we help place animals. Sometimes, a pregnant dog gets dropped off and the babies could get sick with so many animals coming through the shelter. So, we put them in isolation. Or there will be one with a special problem and we help."

Receptionists at each location keep the animals nearby in the waiting areas so clients will know they need homes. Notices are also posted.

"We opened the hospitals to the shelter when we saw how many animals didn't have anywhere to go," Frye said. "The shelter is overwhelmed."

Other area veterinarians say they try to help the homeless, though most prefer to remain anonymous because they fear even more dogs and cats will be brought to them.

Mahnken said he figures strays will be left at his door, regardless.

Take Leonard for instance.

The full-grown cat was left at his clinic in a box with holes punched in the sides and the top duct-taped shut. Leonard came with a handwritten note from an owner who could no longer care for him. The note mentioned all of his good points, including the fact that he would wrap furry arms around your neck and give hugs. Mahnken's clinic placed the cat with an elderly lady.

"It was a match made in heaven," Mahnken said.

There have been others Mahnken has tried to help, from a box of healthy kittens to a dog with a hurt leg dumped along a road.
"My God, the stress these dogs and cats go through," he said. "It's just sad. . . . You lose money and time. Things have to be done. You can't let a dog be in labor for days and die. Sometimes, you make sacrifices."

Yet Mahnken isn't bitter.

"I hope more pets get adopted," he said. "I believe in educating the public about spaying and neutering."

He also works with the Putnam County Humane Society to help place strays and with a few kennels to find homes for greyhounds that can no longer race.

"On the average, we adopt out 30 to 40 dogs and cats a year," he said. "That doesn't include greyhounds."

The Putnam County Humane Society is a nonprofit organization made up of volunteers, and is a separate entity from the local shelter, Putnam Animal Relief Center, though they often work together.

Mahnken is one of several doctors who work with the society in some capacity.

Mahnken personally owns five dogs and 16 cats.

"Most were rejects and unwanted," he said.

He has a couple of sad-eyed, droopy-faced dogs that wander about his office. The breed is Dogue de Bordeaux, or French Mastiff. It is the same sweet tempered, destructive dog seen in the film "Turner & Hooch." Mahnken acknowledges the dogs will eat your couch but are otherwise easy going.

One named Aubaine (French for a glorious gift) exhibited the same drooling problem as Hooch.

Mahnken chuckled as he used his hands to wipe away the spit.

"It's just saliva," he said. "It won't hurt you."