Shiprock woman wins national award for helping families care for pets

Chantal Wadsworth of Shiprock has been named the 2026 More Than a Pet Community Hero Award winner, putting a national spotlight on a problem many San Juan County families know well: too few veterinary resources, too much distance and too many barriers between pets and the care they need.

Humane World for Animals said Wadsworth was chosen because she has spent years connecting residents to clinics, offering her personal phone number to people without internet access and helping elders and families navigate appointments in the Navajo language. The organization said she was born and raised on the Navajo reservation and founded the first-ever pet pantry on the Navajo Nation, a service built for households that may be struggling to feed animals as well as people.

The award also carries a $10,000 grant for Partnership With Native Americans, the organization Wadsworth works with to support people and pets. Humane World for Animals launched the More Than a Pet campaign in 2023 to expand access to affordable veterinary care, pet food and pet-inclusive housing, saying barriers such as transportation, language, time, finances and trust keep millions of families from getting help. The group says more than 20 million pets in the United States live in poverty with their families, and the campaign has helped more than 570,000 pets and their families stay together.

In Shiprock, that work has taken a very practical form. Native News Online reported that the pantry is a drive-thru held throughout the year and serves dogs, cats and livestock animals. A March 2026 distribution in Shiprock served more than 150 households, according to Partnership With Native Americans’ newsletter. For families living far from a clinic, that kind of direct relief can mean the difference between treating an animal and delaying care until a problem becomes worse.

Wadsworth’s recognition also reflects a longer pattern of grassroots animal welfare work on the Navajo Nation. Navajo Times reported in 2021 that Wadsworth and Vernan Kee were rescuing stray dogs across the Navajo Nation through Rez Road Rescue, work tied to the reservation’s persistent stray dog problem. Navajo Nation government commentary has also pointed to limited veterinary resources across the Nation as a reason community-led efforts matter. Humane World for Animals said there are only two veterinary clinics on the Navajo Nation, a shortage that makes transportation, language access and reliable local support especially important in places like Shiprock.