Animal Welfare Overseas
- 1. Brazil Battles Blood Sport (Farra do Boi)
- 2. Fighting to End Horse Slaughter in France
- 3. Educating India - Ghandi's School of Animal Welfare
- 4. Fighting to Survive in Sri Lanka
- 5. Saving the Wild Horses of the Bahamas
- 6. India Takes Sterilization to the Streets
- 7. Spay Day in Sayulita, Mexico
Spay Day in Sayulita, Mexico
Dianna Dorisi
Idaho veterinarians, looking for some R and R south of the border, find a new mission instead.
For several days in November 1999, villagers in the small Mexican town of Sayulita awoke to something completely new in their community. Under the warmth of a rising sun, they straggled into town, some pulling their dogs behind them using simple twine or old rope. Others draped their pets across saddles and trotted into the village on skinny horses. Cats were sacked in pillow cases or burlap bags. What was the special occasion? Sayulitas very first spay and neuter clinic!
A year before, Dr. Robert Pierce and Dr. Dawn Mehra, husband and wife veterinarians and owners of the North Idaho Animal Hospital in Sandpoint, Idaho, had put the slow-moving wheels in motion that finally turned the clinic into reality.
Our first visit to Mexico was to be an economical family vacation, the first ever, explains Mehra. We dreamed of uninterrupted sleep and quiet beaches.
But thats not the way things turned out. Instead, the doctors discovered that Sayulita has two parallel worlds: one of people, and one of their cats and dogs. Although they coexist, they rarely interact. By day, the villagers meander quietly between the shops, cafes and the beach. The nights, however, are filled with the crying of cats and dogs searching for food and mates on the dirt streets of town. We didnt sleep for the first week due to the incessant yipping and howling, Pierce recalls. Even ear plugs werent enough.
In addition to all the racket, the doctors were haunted by the condition and sheer numbers of homeless animals. They were skinny, scabby and flea-bitten. Could anything be done? An idea began to form in the minds of the veterinarians. Would it be possible to set up a spay and neuter clinic in Sayulita?
Branching Out
Local support helped initiate the project, but logistical concerns, work permits and the acquisition of equipment and medical supplies took months. Finally, in November 1999, Pierce and Mehra returned and opened what they fondly refer to as the southern branch.
The goal was to spay and neuter the local animals, initiate the education process and advocate the amazing power of the human-animal bond.
The bond that we Americans have with our animalsour petsis pretty much taken for granted, Pierce says. In Sayulita, its different. We wanted the people there to know that its okay to care about your dog and cat as though its a member of the family.
The biggest challenge proved to be overcoming the publics understanding of spaying and neutering. They were afraid of it. They thought it was barbaric, dangerous and meant death.
But thanks to the efforts of local contacts who spread the news about the clinic through promotional posters and word of mouth, some 40 dogs and cats were operated on at the initial event. Female dogs made up the majority.
The clinic was set up outdoors in a shady spot toward the center of town. No electricity was available. The setup wasnt what you would call high tech, Pierce recalls. But it was sufficient, along with supplies and medicine from their own clinic. It worked out well. There were no complications.
Moving Forward
In April 2000, a subsequent visit was made, this time to the neighboring village of San Pancho, four miles north of Sayulita. Both towns are approximately 60 miles north of Puerto Vallarta. Another 33 dogs and cats were spayed and neutered this time, along with some 40 more during the doctors next visit in November of that year. The most recent visit, in November 2001, resulted in 97 surgeriesmostly canine spaysover a three-week period, bringing the total to date to more than 250.
Pierce and Mehra chose these two small towns because they felt they could make a real difference there, due in part to geographic isolation. Most dogs searching for a mate wont travel four miles, says Mehra, so by spaying and neutering the majority of dogs and cats in the Sayulita/San Pancho area, we hope to make a permanent difference.
The next phase of the project involves catching and operating on members of the feral population and establishing a shelter where homeless animals can be maintained, treated, sterilized, adopted or euthanized, as the situation dictates. This represents a goal that may take years to achieve and will require the support of local veterinarians. But the seed has definitely been planted, and the local population is supportive as they begin to realize that the procedures are safe and effective.
The spay and neuter clinic is a moral victory for the couple, and hopefully only the beginning, says Pierce. If finances allow, the doctors hope to return on a consistent basis to nurture and encourage the attitudes and ideas being cultivated. For those who would like to aid in controlling the pet overpopulation problem in Mexico, the North Idaho Animal Hospital has set up a special fund for the cause. To learn more, Doctors Pierce and Mehra invite you to visit their website at www.idahovet.com.
Dianna Dorisi is a freelance writer living in Sagle, Idaho.
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For More Information For veterinarians interested in implementing similar programs abroad, Dr. Mehra offers the following tips:
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© 2002 ASPCA
ASPCA Animal Watch - Spring 2002
Courtesy of
ASPCA
424 East 92nd St.
New York, NY 10128-6804
(212) 876-7700
www.aspca.org
