Some invitations are just too irresistible, like this one: Come join us out in the campo as we sterilize about 50 dogs and cats in the little community of San Antonio del Varal.

How could I say no to that?

The invitation came from Donna Lynes-Miller, the lifeforce behind Rosey’s Wish, a mobile veterinarian clinic on the front lines of the effort to reduce the number of abandoned and feral dogs and cats in San Miguel de Allende.

San Antonio Del Varal is a bit more than a half-hour away from, and a pleasant century or two behind, the city of San Miguel de Allende. An easy drive down the highway toward Queretero, and a sharp left onto a hard-packed dusty road that ends at the rancheria.

The Rosey’s Wish bus wasn’t hard to find amid the beige, brown, burnt reds, and whitewash walls of the town. Its cheerful Irish green paint job stands out like a beacon wherever it goes. It is almost a celebratory spectacle, parked in the elementary school courtyard.

And it is meant to be that way.

The cheerful welcome air sends a message to the townspeople – “We are here for you.”

A brief film from documentary-maker Faith Fuller on Rosey’s Wish:

They had been there for the neighborhood for well over an hour before documentarian Faith Fuller and I arrived at 10 a.m. There was a line leading to the registration desk where dogs and cats were weighed, tagged, and signed in with remarkable efficiency. Every owner was assigned a number, freeing them to retreat beneath the shade trees to await their turn.

Outside the bus, a veterinarian was sedating pets, while inside, two more vets were handling the sterilizations on long operating tables lining both sides of the bus. Volunteers were carrying animals in and out of the bus and reuniting the groggy pups and cats with their owners.

Residents came with cats and dogs of all shapes and sizes:

There it is, neat and clean, a smooth operation that continued non-stop all day Saturday, January 10, and all day Sunday.

But the event didn’t just start with the arrival of the big green bus.

Rosey’s Wish and its partners go into a community weeks before the bus arrives to lay the groundwork for a successful event.

As Donna Lynes-Miller explains it, the first order of business is to identify the “dog lady of the town.” That is someone in a neighborhood who has turned rescuing of dogs and cats into an avocation. Someone who has the community’s respect and attention.

By partnering with prominent community members Zenaida and Sindi, Rosey’s Wish gains the public’s buy-in. This person helps Rosey’s Wish communicate with neighbors about the importance of sterilization. When it comes time to make appointments, the neighborhood leader is point of contact. The host will book 10 appointments for each hour that the clinic is open.

Vets and volunteers moved animals swiftly and smoothly through the clinic:

Next, Rosey’s Wish conducts a census in San Antonio del Varal with the help of the volunteer group Amigos al 100. Myrna Montes, Carlos Garcia, and Michelle Mar led the door-to-door survey.

With the start of the new year and this, its first sterilization clinic for 2026, Rosey’s Wish is going all in on a scientific approach. The goal is to sterilize 70 percent of the village’s pets.

That, says Donna, is the golden number, based on numerous research projects. Seventy percent is the point at which animal births and deaths in any community level out. 

As Donna wrote to me, “The cycle is broken, thereby stopping overpopulation. Simply put, birth rates fall below replacement levels. At the 70 percent sterilization level, the population stabilizes then declines. This concept is used during immunization campaigns for contagious diseases for humans.”

This is why community buy-in is so important to break the cycle of over-population. Reaching 70 percent over a weekend is a hugly ambitious goal. And in San Antonio del Varal, Rosey’s Wish was trying it for the first time.

The animal census by Amigos al 100 is used to determine just how close they come to reaching their target.

On that Saturday, January 10, the school yard was a busy place by 10 a.m.

Maria Fernandez and Marta Olbera and other volunteers were greeting pet owners, checking them in, weighing the pets, and assigning numbers. The three veterinarians from Puebla were sedating and sterilizing at a steady clip.

Pet education for youngsters is an important and fun part of the clinics:

Rosey’s Wish recruits vets from all over Mexico for its clinics. It is long and busy days for them, with the emphasis on efficiency and proficiency. Meanwhile, Hanna Hotch from San Miguel’s Dogs Without Borders SMA and Control Canino was focusing on the wildcard in any community – the feral street dogs and cats. Hanna was the chief wrangler, and also used her skills to placate difficult pets brought in by neighbors.

Sterilizing strays is something Rosey’s Wish doesn’t ordinarily do, explains Donna. Wild dogs and cats can’t be returned to the streets where they face disease, hunger, aggressive animals – and a low survival rate.

These animals today will return to Control Canino, which has a 40 percent adoption rate – better odds for the street animals.

Meanwhile, in another part of the courtyard, volunteers Mary Finley and Amanda Keidan are trying out a new education program with about two-dozen local children. They are showing them the proper way to treat and care for pets.

The kids eagerly participate, laugh, and answer quiz questions. For their participation, they get to select toys collected by Amigos al 100. They also get pet-themed coloring books and crayons from Amigos de Animales. 

In its census, Amigos al 100, counted 244 animals in San Antonio del Varal, of which 88 were already sterilized. They also found eight on the streets that would require sterilization.

It takes a lot of dedicated volunteers to put on a clinic:

So, did Rosey’s Wish hit its target 70 percent?

It did indeed.

Over the two days, 91 dogs and cats were sterilized. Combined with the 88 already sterilized, San Antonio del Varal they reached 73.4 percent, according to Donna.

Unfortunately, 20 pet owners failed to show, for whatever reason. If they had, the community would have achieved an amazing 96.8 percent.

And the show goes on. 

For January, Rosey’s Wish has performed 154 sterilizations. They are off to a great start, on target to exceed the total 1,357 that have been conducted since the big green bus hit the road in 2024.

It will be a busy year. The number of unsterilized animals is staggering, and the result is unwanted cats and dogs, strays, unfed animals, abandoned pets, and unchecked disease and infections.

The big green bus summarizes the goal of Rosey’s Wish in crisp white lettering on its sides: End Animal Suffering.

It was the thing that hit Donna Lynes-Miller so hard when she left her comfortable “Centro bubble” and discovered a sad and hungry little stray pup who took on the name Rosey, back in 2023. It was an eye-opener, to put it mildly.

“For the first time, I saw free-roaming dogs in horrible conditions,” recalls Donna. “I decided I just had to do something.”

It has been a relentless pursuit since that time – create Rosey’s Wish foundation, raise funds, get the bus and refurbish it for clinical operations, recruit volunteers, schedule clinics – and now, with the early January success at San Antonio de Varal, there is a science-based strategy – the 70 percent solution.

You walk around the clinic and can’t help but be impressed by the volunteers who all share the same energy, enthusiasm, drive, and cheerfulness as their leader.

“We all have the same passion,” says Donna Lynes-Miller. “Enough is enough.”

If you’d like to share that passion, a wonderful opportunity is coming up in February. It is a fundraiser called Fix & Fizz on February 26 at Johnny’s Piano Bar and Casa Linda Hotel.

Details are in the poster on this page. This is big. Rosey’s Wish is counting on the fundraiser to cover 40 percent of its 2026 budget, enough for 20 clinics just like the one at San Antonio del Varal.