Second Chance has exciting mews to share as we all observe #GlobalCatDay today!
We’ve just received a generous grant from the Margaret T. Petrie Spaying and Neutering Foundation to support our SNIP It program; with their help (as well as the help of our donors), we intend to double the number of spay/neuter surgeries we can fund for cats outside of our adoption program!
The Humane Society of the United States estimates there are 30 to 40 million unowned, outdoor cats in the U.S. and that these cats produce around 80% of the kittens born each year, overwhelming shelters and rescues at best, and being euthanized at worst. While rescue and adoption are vital, life-saving services for homeless animals, we have always known that spaying and neutering animals is the only way to end animal homelessness, which is why—since our inception 36 years ago—we have spayed and neutered every cat and dog we’ve rescued prior to adoption. Of course, we’ll continue to do so, but over the last few years, we’ve also been supporting these procedures for animals outside of our adoption program.
Cats owned by low-income guardians, cats living in feral colonies, and cats soon-to-be adopted from rural shelters with no/low spay/neuter budgets have all benefited from our funding. Between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023, Second Chance covered the costs of over 1,200 community cats’ spay/neuter procedures through our partnerships with other animal welfare organizations and veterinary hospitals. [The unadoptable feral cats who have been served by our SNIP It program (Spay/Neuter Initiative Program) have also been vaccinated and returned to their colonies with caretakers.] We are optimistic that, in July of 2024, we’ll be able to share that we funded 2,400+ surgeries in the prior 12 months, thanks in no small part to the Margaret T. Petrie Spaying and Neutering Foundation!
Pictured: photos from spay/neuter procedures performed in October 2023. The mama cat in the pink carrier was picked up outside a home in Dunn, NC, along with her four kittens; all five have now been spayed/neutered. The kitty in the cage was found, overly-thin and pregnant, sleeping at a gas station; her health will never again be risked by pregnancy.
