Pawprints to offer low-cost spay, neuter service for pets next week

Pet owners in the area who have not had their animals spayed or neutered will have a chance to have the procedure done next week.

The Pawprints on the Heartland's Frank and Isabelle Rinehart low-cost spay and neuter van will be operating on Tuesday in Fort Scott. Pawprints is a non-profit organization based in Pittsburg dedicated to helping control the overpopulation of animals. The organization also parnters with the Southeast Kansas Humane Society of Crawford County in Pittsburg.

Mary Kay Caldwell, the vice-president of the organization, said it is important for local residents to do their part in preventing pet overpopulation in the area.

"It needs to be addressed," she said. "People need to take it seriously and have their pet spayed or neutered."

To date, nearly 60,000 pets in Southeast Kansas have been spayed or neutered in the van preventing the birth of millions of homeless pets this season. Despite this, pet overpopulation is still a problem in the region, and animal shelters are becoming overcrowded as they deal with growing numbers, Caldwell said.

"Oh yes, it is still a problem," she said. "All the shelters in the whole area are full. I get calls almost every day about all the pets."

In recent years, Pawprints has teamed up with the Kritter Kare Klinic in Fort Scott to provide local pet owners with services for their animals and start an effort to eliminate millions of unwanted animals. The partnership allows elderly, low-income or disabled pet owners to receive spay and neuter services at Kritter Kare Klinic at an affordable rate. Local residents who meet the guidelines can call (877) 887-7729 and apply for a voucher that can be used at Kritter Kare Klinic to get a dog or cat spayed or neutered, Caldwell said.

Pawprints provides spay and neutering services to residents in five counties with its low-cost spay and neuter van. The van, which has been traveling to various towns in Southeast Kansas and Southwest Missouri, is equipped with a licensed veterinarian and two vet technicians.

The regular fee for the spay or neuter surgery for cats and small dogs is $35, however, vouchers will be available for eligible pet owners. All pets must be at least three months of age and on a leash or in a carrier. Appointments are necessary and can be made by calling (877) 887-7729. Anyone who would like to sponsor a spay or neuter for a disadvantaged animal may send their $35 donation to Pawprints, P.O. Box 644, Pittsburg, Kan., 66762.

Having a pet spayed or neutered is not only important toward helping control overpopulation, the procedure can also present health benefits for the pet, such as reducing the risk of serious health issues like cancer, Caldwell said.

Each year, thousands of pets in Southeast Kansas must be put to death simply because there are not enough homes for them. Pawprints' motto is "Prevention, Not Destruction," according to a news release.

According to the Pawprints website, www.pawprintsontheheartland.org, one cat can produce 420,000 kittens in seven years. Because of the pet overpopulation, about 70 percent of animals in shelters and pounds have to be killed. An average of six to eight million cats and dogs enter shelters each year, making the number of dogs and cats who are euthanized in shelters each year about three to four million, according to the Humane Society of the United States.

For more information, contact Caldwell at (620) 231-2233.