Dog and cat owners in Paterson, about 64km from Grahamstown, showed up in numbers at the local community hall for the annual SPCA Spay Day last Friday. The SPCA, an organisation known as Brothers Safari (www.brotherssafaris.com) and a group of professional veterinarians from the USA held a special day aimed at stabilising the pet population in the area.
Dog and cat owners in Paterson, about 64km from Grahamstown, showed up in numbers at the local community hall for the annual SPCA Spay Day last Friday. The SPCA, an organisation known as Brothers Safari (www.brotherssafaris.com) and a group of professional veterinarians from the USA held a special day aimed at stabilising the pet population in the area.
The animals were vaccinated, neutered or spayed and then given nutritious food after their treatment. “The purpose is to make a small impact and give back to the community.
There are so many dogs in Paterson and there’s no way that the people can afford to pay R800 to go to a vet,” said Rebecca Wood, veterinarian nurse at Brothers Safari.
David Kapp, lives with his wife and a total of ten cats in Enkel da Doek Farm, just outside Paterson. Kapp brought seven cats; five males to be neutered and two females to be spayed, as the farm couple would like to curb the cat population explosion in their household.
“We have more cats than we did in last year’s Spay Day because cats unlike dogs, they breed faster,” said Cathy Smith, Office Administrator at Brothers Safari.
In its second year, the joint-venture Spay Day managed to treat a total of 81 animals in a single day, an effort that is certain to have made a difference in the lives of many Paterson residents.
“This year nobody came with puppies like last year, meaning that the community was phased and that we have made a difference.
With the programme every year, we can manage to stabilise the population of the animals in the area,” said Brenda Lisk, vice-chairperson at SPCA.
United States based vet, Dean Rice reveals that an estimated 60 000 pets are left unwanted and homeless in the streets of Arizona.
He said that after having noticed a great need for animal and wildlife care, his group would like to pay back with their expertise and that he would like to see a difference not, just in Africa, but in the world’s population of animals.
