April 6, 2010 – Elizabethtown, NC
Those who understand what A Shelter Friend is all about will understand how big tomorrow, April 7th is to Bladen County. For almost three years, volunteers have been doing what they can to make sure pets languishing in the Bladen Animal Control Shelter are noticed and hopefully adopted. At least 2,500 dogs and cats, puppies and kittens have been guided to rescue organizations and safe new homes during that time span. However, A Shelter Friend volunteers have always known that to fulfill a vision to end the killing of homeless and unwanted pets at the county shelters — more is needed. Only spaying and neutering helps reduce the number of homeless pets and pet deaths.
Enter Dr. and Mrs. Gensel of Elizabethtown Veterinary Hospital. They made the decision to close their hospital one day/month and work that day with a total volunteer staff to spay and neuter the pets of qualified low-income households at a greatly reduced fee. The Bladen Department of Social Services stepped in to income-screen those households which apply to have their pets spayed and neutered. Their expertise in this area makes a sensitive and difficult job as painless as possible. A Shelter Friend volunteers have been in training and will work alongside Dr. and Mrs. Gensel and the staff of their hospital, who are also volunteering their time, to perform 35-45 spay and neuter surgeries each month — surgeries which would not have otherwise taken place. This is expected to have a huge impact on the intake and subsequent killing of homeless pets at the county shelter.
Known as an “In-clinic Spay/Neuter Clinic” the first of many will be held tomorrow, Wednesday April 7th at Elizabethtown Veterinary Hospital on Hwy. 701.Volunteers will arrive at 7:00 AM and pre-scheduled income-qualified patients will begin arriving shortly after.
A Shelter Friend would love for the community to become involved with this project, since it will benefit the community when tax dollars are not spent picking up and disposing of litters of puppies and kittens born under porches and running in neighborhoods. Besides — it is the right thing to do.The team of volunteers it will take to put on each clinic is large — and hungry!Because we will be at the clinic all day, businesses are called on to make donations of snacks, drinks, breakfast and lunch items.Towels, blankets and opened-but-unused surgical supplies can be put to good use.Monetary donations will be used to purchase additional surgical instruments which will allow more surgeries to be performed in a day, as each must be cleaned and sterilized in-between patients.
And it is difficult for volunteers to commit to working a full day once/ month every month, so new volunteers are always welcome! Call 910-645-2297 or send contact information to asf@intrstar.net
A quarter of a million pets are put to sleep or euthanized in animal shelters in North Carolina every year, including the puppies of purebred dogs. Your pet’s puppies and kittens could end up euthanized or suffering in the streets. Spaying and neutering helps reduce the number of homeless pets and pet deaths.