Spay and Neuter!

There are more than enough friendly, handsome, and cuddly dogs and cats waiting at shelters to be adopted.
Please don't buy animals from breeders and please don't let your animals reproduce!

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Thanks to local veterinarians and other supporters!

We couldn't do any of this spay/neuter work without you! Thanks so much for your generosity and commitment to the animals in our area.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Paws to Consider: The Value of Our Spay/Neuter Campaign

Some people like numbers, others prefer pictures, but I like names.

We are celebrating the results of our March “Prevent a Litter” campaign this week. The numbers are what the media will (hopefully) promote: 197 pets (109 dogs and 88 cats) were fixed in March 2013 as part of our campaign (discounted rates + coupons from ACHS). A picture of a reluctant mama dog with her fourteen puppies might be a better reminder of how quickly they can multiply. But for me the names make it real: in 2013 we helped calm down Bruiser, Roger, Fuzzy, and Garfield. And Snickers, Little, Sissy, and Gaga won’t be having any more unwanted litters of kittens or puppies. That’s fantastic news, because there would not have been enough homes for all of them.

It’s hard to believe that in 2014 we’ll hold our FIFTH annual “Prevent a Litter” campaign. We are already at the point when people anticipate the event in the springtime: our shelter manager says that folks start calling in January. That’s because we are offering help that they desperately need. It probably only takes personal experience with one “oops litter” to teach people that it’s true what they say: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” It is certainly cheaper to spay/neuter a pet than it is to care for a pregnant mama for nine weeks (they are eating for six … or fifteen in the case of Gracie!) and a nursing mama and her young ones for eight more weeks. It is certainly cost effective to spay/neuter.

But who should pay the bill? Are you willing to make a special donation to your local Humane Society so that we can continue to prevent the birth of unwanted cats and dogs?

We hope so, because the ASPCA – the national animal welfare organization which provided partial support for our campaign for the first three years – has decided that it is time for us to make it on our own. Like baby birds, it’s time for us to fly and start supporting ourselves. And certainly the time is right, now that we have a track record of four very successful campaigns and the endorsement of all three veterinary clinics in Kirksville (not to mention clinics in La Plata, Lancaster, Unionville, and Edina). The time is right for individuals within this community who care deeply about animals to help sustain this very worthy project.

And if you or someone you know is one of the people who benefited from a $50 spay/neuter certificate or the reduced rates, could you do us a favor? Tell your friends and co-workers how much you appreciated this help, and consider paying it forward: even a small donation ($5 or $10) can make it so that someone else can benefit like you did during our next PAL campaign.

You may donate by writing a check to the Adair County Humane Society (write PAL 2014 in the memo line) and either drop it off at our shelter (Hwy. 6 east of Kirksville) or mail it to P.O. Box 481 in Kirksville. Or go online (http://www.adairhumane.org/donatevolunteer.html) and donate via credit card or PayPal. Either way, your money will go a long way toward reducing animal suffering in your community.

Gracie, Garfield, Gaga, and the 697 other animals who have been helped by this campaign thus far thank you.

Monday, May 20, 2013

The Results Are In!


ACHS Celebrates Results, Worries about Future of Spay/Neuter Campaign

Kirksville, MO -- May 20, 2013 -- The Adair County Humane Society is pleased to announce the results of its fourth annual March “Be a PAL – Prevent a Litter” spay/neuter campaign: 197 owned pets were fixed, 109 dogs and 88 cats.

Approximately 700 dogs and cats have been fixed within the first four years of the March “Prevent a Litter” (PAL) campaign. The campaign is having a significant impact on the number of homeless animals in our area, as these 700 pets were kept from multiplying into 3500 unwanted cats and dogs.

People paid for the surgeries by either taking advantage of discounts at local veterinary clinics, using $50 coupons from the ACHS, or combining the two. In general more female animals were fixed than males, no doubt because it’s the female animals who will (without human intervention) have many unwanted litters. But it’s relatively inexpensive to fix a male, and savvy individuals increasingly recognize the health, behavioral, and community benefits of neutering their male pets.

All three Kirksville veterinary clinics participated in the campaign, as did clinics in La Plata, Lancaster, Unionville, and Edina. These veterinary clinics were not compensated by the ACHS for their discounts. The top clinic in the area was the Adair County Veterinary Clinic, which performed 94 spay/neuter surgeries during the month of March, all at special discounted rates.

In mid-February the Adair County Humane Society distributed one hundred and forty $50 spay/neuter certificates to people in financial need. Nearly 70% of these were redeemed. The bill for this year’s campaign was $4725, which was paid for by donations from people who recognize that prevention is the best strategy for dealing with the problem of pet overpopulation. Much of this money was raised by a matching funds challenge in early February.

The ACHS was fortunate enough to receive special spay/neuter grants from the ASPCA in 2010, 2011, and 2012 to partially fund the PAL campaign. But there was no grant money available to support the 2013 campaign. Since the campaign is now well-established, board members hope that individuals within the community will provide monetary donations to continue this important work. There will not be a 2014 March “Prevent a Litter” campaign unless the ACHS has a very successful fund-raising year.


More information is available at the ACHS website: adairhumane.org.