Spay-Neuter Services of Indiana recently announced it has launched The Fix is IN! Crisis Relief Fund, a $100,000 emergency relief effort for Indiana’s veterinary clinics hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now, thanks to the support of a generous donor, the next $10,000 has a match.
Many nonprofit veterinary clinics operate on tight budgets and are facing economic hardship due to closures just like many other small businesses during the statewide stay-at-home order.
Funds raised will make it possible for SNSI to issue more spay/neuter certificates, enabling clinics to fill their surgery schedules and receive financial compensation for preforming surgeries for shelter animals in need.
“Indiana’s veterinary network is vital to reducing pet overpopulation, providing an alternative to life-ending euthanasia and the abuse suffered by animals when there are too many of them,“ said SNSI Executive Director Cheri Storms.
“Our free spay/neuter surgeries provide the financial stimulus needed to help everyone,” she said. “They help shelters and rescue groups prepare animals for adoption, thereby easing the burden on our overcrowded shelters, which is especially important during this pandemic and time of economic uncertainly.”
The partnering veterinary clinics offer low-cost surgeries and run transport programs to 57 Indiana counties, ensuring pet owners, rescue groups and shelters have access to the services they need, Storms said.
“Indiana shelters are reporting a continued increase in the number of animals adopted into forever homes rather than euthanized,” she said. “Spaying and neutering is the only way to humanely reduce shelter overpopulation. The lives of shelter animals are at risk without adequate spay/neuter capacity.”
SNSI will utilize the emergency relief fund to provide free spay/neuter surgery certificates to rescue groups and shelters to ensure clinic surgery schedules are filled and as many animals as possible are being fixed.
“We are counting on statewide community support to help us raise the funds necessary to keep our low-cost clinics operating,” Storms said.
Individuals and companies interested in contributing to the relief effort can visit spaynuterservices.org. Donations also are accepted through SNSI’s Facebook page, facebook.com/getthemfixed.
SNSI is leading Indiana to zero-kill by funding thousands of spay/neuter surgeries each year. It supports the work of more than 300 rescue groups and shelters, working with a network of 130 participating veterinarians to address the root cause of pet overpopulation.
