Grant to fund 250 La Pine stray/feral cat surgeries

Best Friends Animal Society ® in partnership with PetSmart Charities ® announced Thursday that Bend Spay and Neuter Project has been awarded a grant to provide 250 free spay or neuter surgeries for stray/feral cats living in La Pine through the La Pine Kitty Roundup Program.

Pet cats may also qualify for the program with a $10 co-pay. Appointments are required for this program. To schedule, please call 541-617-1010 or email info@bendsnip.org.

Bend Spay and Neuter Project is a participating member of the No More Homeless Pets® Network, a program of Best Friends Animal Society, which offers help and support to animal rescue groups that save lives in their communities.

“This grant project provides an innovative solution to save more cat’s lives while working toward achieving the Best Friends mission of No More Homeless Pets,” said Ellen Gilmore, manager of Best Friends’ No More Homeless Pets Network.

Through Bend Spay and Neuter Project, stray and feral cats are sterilized using trap-neuter-return (TNR), the widely accepted, humane method of controlling populations of free-roaming cats. The cats will also be de-wormed and vaccinated for rabies and feline distemper when they are brought in for surgery.

The director of Bend Spay and Neuter Project, Megan Wellinghoff, said: “This grant means that we can add the La Pine Kitty Roundup program to our list of 2014 programs to end pet homelessness in Central Oregon. Our goal is to perform 250 spay/neuter operations over the course of 2014. We would like to thank Best Friends Animal Society and PetSmart Charities for their support in making this project a great success.”

This lifesaving grant is part of Best Friends Animal Society’s mission of No More Homeless Pets ® . Every day, approximately 9,000 pets are killed in shelters because they don’t have a home. Best Friends and the No More Homeless Pets® Network Partners are committed to saving them.

About Bend Spay and Neuter Project

Bend Spay and Neuter Project provides affordable, preventative veterinary care for at risk cats and dogs in order to create a more humane community. All of our programs are geared towards keeping animals out of our local shelters and with their families. From our HOPE Pet Food Bank to our work with local homeless Veterans, Bend Spay and Neuter Project wants to keep people with their pets. Because of the generosity of our community, we are able to say that we will never turn anyone away for inability to pay.

About Best Friends Animal Society ®

Best Friends Animal Society, named Animal Welfare Non-Profit National Brand of the Year based on the 2012 Harris Poll EquiTrend ® study, is a national animal welfare organization building no-kill programs and partnerships that will bring about a day when there are No More Homeless Pets®. The society’s leading initiatives in animal care and community programs are coordinated from its Kanab, Utah headquarters, the country’s largest no-kill sanctuary. This work is made possible by the personal and financial support of a grassroots network of supporters and community partners across the nation.

Become a fan of Best Friends Animal Society on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bestfriendsanimalsociety

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http://www.facebook.com/bendsnip

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http://www.twitter.com/bendsnips

About PetSmart Charities®?
Established in 1994, PetSmart Charities, Inc. is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that creates and supports programs that save the lives of homeless pets, raise awareness of companion animal welfare issues, and promote healthy relationships between people and pets. The largest funder of animal welfare efforts in North America, PetSmart Charities® has provided more than $165 million in grants and programs benefiting animal welfare organizations and has helped save the lives of more than 5 million pets through its in-store adoption program. To learn more about how PetSmart Charities is working toward its vision of a lifelong, loving home for every pet, visit petsmartcharities.org or call 1-800-423-PETS (7387).