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 Last Sunday the Spay the Strays Group held their first “mini” clinic in the small village of Copecito, on the road towards El Valle. The outstanding hosts for the event were Bob and Gladys Sanchez-Berry who own a B&B there that they allowed us to take over for the weekend. This time, we worked in collaboration with the McKee Foundation, a worldwide non-profit organization whose mission is that of reducing the population of unwanted dogs and cats. Their two vets, Alexis and Juan, managed to neuter 3 cats on Saturday and 40 dogs on Sunday which was exactly our goal for this!
The location and the vets and their procedures were new. So, we did have a few wrinkles that need to be ironed out. But it was encouraging to work with so many first time, enthusiastic volunteers. We are confident that we can count on them to continue to help with our vitally important work in the future. As always, the local pet owners were obviously grateful and relieved that they were able to get their animals sterilized.
I would like to thank the following people for their invaluable support. First, Bob and Gladys for welcoming us into their home. Then, our two vets, Alexis and Juan who remained good natured despite their exhaustion. We were honored to have the assistance of Maryla, a visiting French vet and Laure, her former vet tech who lives in the City. Together, they jumped right in and worked tirelessly all day. Jerry Roam, Elier, Wolfgang, Dusty, Richard and Chris helped by both driving animals and owners back and forth but also by being “taxis” - carrying the sedated animals to and from the operating table. Marisol bagged up dog food to give to the pet owners and talked with them about post-surgery care. Maria registered the petowners and weighed their pets. Kathy, Suzanne, and Ruth monitored the pets in post-op. Carole, a retired doctor, helped give shots and assisted the vets while her husband, Jacques, took pictures. And Buzzy was a jack of all trades – taxi, aftercare, and vet assistant. Those current and former members of our Spay the Strays Group – namely Sheila, Barb, Jill, and Terry can always be counted on to pitch in wherever is necessary.
It looks like we will hold our major two-day Spay the Strays Days on 21 and 22 March in San Carlos. Our aim will be to neuter at least 200 animals! Right now, I am still deciding on a venue. But, one thing is sure, we will need every possible person who can contribute their time and every donation, large and small. McKee Foundation appears to be booked in Boquete in February and in El Valle in April, so we will probably be looking at holding our next clinic in Sora in May. But, as things firm up, we will keep all of you posted. In the meantime, please remember that if you have rescued an animal that is in need of neutering, contact me for information concerning Spay Panama’s services in the City!
As always, thanks for your heartwarming support.
Mary Rhodes
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