The Promise to Stay Together

Just before Christmas, an unhoused young man walked his year-old dog Lola into yet another veterinary clinic. Lola couldn’t open up one of her eyes. Seven visits to her primary care veterinarian had brought seven pronouncements of a stubborn corneal ulcer without finding out why it kept happening. Finally, a specialist determined Lola had an abnormal hair growing directly into the cornea – a treatable condition requiring cryotherapy and anesthesia, something the young man simply couldn’t afford. 

Then he found Sage Compassion for Animals. An organization dedicated to funding critical veterinary care for low-income Bay Area residents so pets in medical crisis can remain with their loving families. One treatment cured Lola.

“It really makes me very happy to know that there are people out there willing to help,” Christopher later wrote, “and I hope I can do the same one day for other dogs that need help.”

Founded in 2020 by Dr. Julie Smith, a board-certified veterinary surgeon who pivoted from leading SAGE Veterinary Centers into nonprofit work, Sage Compassion for Animals (SageC4A) operates at the intersection of animal and human welfare. For many families, pets are not just companions, they are emotional support systems, stability during hardship, and often a person’s closest source of comfort.  

Since its founding, SageC4A has helped over 580 pets stay with the people who love them and has awarded more than $1.33 million in grants across all nine Bay Area counties. The organization has a remarkable 97% return-to-home rate as well, engineered through deep partnerships with nearly 60 veterinary hospitals. 

More Pets Than Ever in Need

The need has never been greater. In the first quarter of 2026 alone, applications to SageC4A climbed 40 percent. Smith attributes this to a perfect storm: post-COVID veterinary costs that outpace inflation, escalating housing and food prices, and contracting safety nets such as SNAP. 

She is also seeing a new crisis cropping up: an intensifying economic hardship among today’s young people. Smith reflects that the fastest-growing cohort of applicants to SageC4A are young adults. 

Clyde is a seven-year-old fluffy orange cat whose mom rescued him as a kitten when she was just 19. “Clyde has been my emotional support companion for over seven years,” his mom wrote, “and he has been by my side through so many of life’s ups and downs.” But when Clyde developed a life-threatening intestinal obstruction, SageC4A stepped in and approved an emergency grant within two hours. “Being able to move forward with his care, with [SageC4A’s] help, is an immense relief to our family as he is truly a member of our family unit.”

“With our Healing Lives Program, we aren’t just healing pets, but we are also helping heal the families facing emotional and financial crises, and helping heal the veterinary teams by allowing them to provide compassionate care to pets in need,” says Smith.