March 7, 2005

Spay/Neuter Clinic to Open in Prince George
The BC SPCA Board of Directors was in Prince George last weekend to announce a major initiative that will save thousands of animal lives in northern British Columbia.
Mary Lou Troman, president of the Society, announced plans for a permanent spay/neuter clinic in Prince George that will provide more than 4,000 spay/neuter operations each year at reduced or no cost.

The North Cariboo Branch is the busiest of the Society’s 37 shelters, taking in more than 4,500 abandoned, abused, injured and surrendered animals each year. Until now, it has been cost-prohibitive for the SPCA to spay and neuter most of the animals leaving the shelter.

The clinic is desperately needed in this region. While most shelters in BC do not have to euthanize adoptable animals for space, the Prince George staff have no option but to euthanize 51% of the animals it receives – many of them kittens and puppies -- due to the staggering number of abandoned animals and the high rate of disease in the general animal population.

The SPCA clinic will open in July for the pre-adoption spay/neuter of all animals leaving the North Cariboo shelter and the facility will open to members of the general public in the fall of 2005. The clinic will also serve First Nations communities in the region.

The Society has received a $50,000 grant from the Vancouver Foundation to help offset the $270,000 cost of establishing the clinic and to support education initiatives on pet overpopulation with First Nations communities. For full details on the announcement, visit the SPCA website at www.spca.bc.ca.