In a scene reminiscent of Habersham’s mass vaccination site, cars snaked up the hill to the county fairgrounds pavilion on Saturday. Some waited in line for hours, but it wasn’t COVID vaccines they were waiting on; instead, it was pet vaccinations and vouchers.
Habersham County Animal Care and Control organized the free drive-through clinic with Planned Pethood of Georgia based in Duluth. The vaccines were paid for by a generous donation from the Jim Parker Charitable Fund.
“A donor wanted to start a pilot program to provide vaccinations and, since we work with Planned Pethood quite a bit for our spay and neuters for the shelter, they selected Habersham to be the first recipient for the funding,” says Habersham County Animal Care and Control Director Madi Nix.
“This is a very hard hit area as far as people in need,” says Planned Pethood’s Tanya Weaver explaining why they chose Habersham County for the pilot program. As transportation coordinator for the nonprofit’s Go Fix Georgia spay/neuter campaign, Weaver is all too familiar with Habersham’s low pet retention rate. Each week, she sees the number of shelter animals the county sends to Duluth to be fixed and says her organization felt they could make a difference.
“We knew that there was a high demand. We knew there was going to be a lot of people,” Weaver says of Saturday’s turnout, but even knowing that, “we were blown away.”
The pilot program started as a needs-based initiative targeted to specific areas of the county. When only seventy people signed up, HCAC expanded it countywide. The response was so overwhelming that within three hours of opening the clinic on July 24, organizers cut off the line to incoming cars. It took two hours to process those already waiting.
Encouraging responsible pet ownership
Three HCAC staff members and around a dozen staff and volunteers from Duluth operated the clinic. Veterinarians administered vaccines and microchipped each animal as assistants calmed the nervous pets and consulted with their thankful owners. They also distributed free flea and tick protection.
“I think it’s awesome you all come to a small town and help us out,” said one pet owner who asked to be identified only as Kayla from Cornelia. “My dog and cat needed some vaccines and microchips, so I was going to take advantage of it.”
Mara Hames of Clarkesville brought her three newest pets with her. Kittens Lilly and Poncho and her dog Tut got the full treatment. The clinic saved her hundreds of dollars and gave her young pets a good start in life.
“I’m thankful that I can get this for free,” Hames says. “I actually have more [pets] at home, so, yes, it does help out a lot.”
With her dogs, Lola and Lulu, in tow, Kathy Nicholson used the same word many others did to describe the event…”amazing!”
“It gives folks that have the heart for pets an opportunity to take care of them,” she says. “I appreciate Habersham [County Animal Care and Control] jumping in there and being a team player with all of our pets in Habersham.”
Nix estimates the value of services each pet received, including the vouchers, was around $250. They treated 211 pets.
Organizers hope events like this will encourage responsible pet ownership.
“I just hope it helps keep the pet population down and makes people more aware of taking care of their animals,” says Planned Pethood volunteer Craig Benn. He encourages pet owners to spay and neuter their animals because “that is a critical part of the whole process.”
“We’re stopping the overpopulation and return to shelter rate,” says Weaver. “We don’t want any more babies brought in that could have been stopped.”
Cheaper to fix them than kill them
After a brief reprieve during last year’s lockdown when people were adopting pets for company, the Habersham County Animal Shelter is again full of kittens, cats, puppies, and dogs. Every one of them needs a loving home, but not all of them will find one.
Through the years, Nix has developed strong relationships with pet rescues and foster services. She and her staff dedicate much of their time and energy to finding suitable homes for animals in the shelter. Sadly, when they can’t, they have to euthanize them. Nix hopes clinics such as this will help educate the public about responsible pet ownership.
“It’s cheaper to fix them than kill them,” she says, cutting to the cold hard truth.
The vast majority of the animals the clinic crew saw Saturday, approximately 70%, were not altered. Now, with vouchers in hand and Planned Pethood’s assistance, they have the financial incentive and opportunity to avoid unwanted pet pregnancies.
“The need is there. The need is great. I hope in the future our department will be able to give back more to our citizens,” says Nix, encouraged by the good turnout Saturday. “With a new shelter coming, we’re so hoping that we can start providing services like this on a regular basis.”
Habersham County voters approved a new animal shelter in the current SPLOST. When that facility is built, it will include some surgical space.
“We hope that there’s going to be more funds in the future,” adds Weaver. “We’re very appreciative to the Jim Parker Foundation for doing this. It’s fantastic!”
