Animal rescue organizations – especially those that focus on felines – are feeling the ripple effects of COVID-19 restrictions that shuttered spay and neuter clinics.
Lawanna Johnson, president of Franklin County-based Purr Partners, said the number of kittens being born this year is mainly due to the fact that those clinics couldn’t perform spay and neuter procedures.
Johnson spoke with WIZS co-host Bill Harris Wednesday during the People and Pets segment of TownTalk. She estimated that more than 3 million of the spay/neuter surgeries weren’t able to be done because the clinics were, at the time, deemed non-essential services.
Now, even with pandemic restrictions largely removed, “clinics are so backed up you can’t get appointments,” she noted.
There simply aren’t many low-cost spay and neuter options in the four-county area, and Johnson estimates that she gets 50 calls a day from folks in the community asking for suggestions or help with cats that have shown up in their area.
Originally started as a not-for-profit cat adoption program to assist high-kill shelters in the area, Purr Partners has shifted some of its attention in the wake of this continuing crisis and has started a program in Franklin County it calls “Wandering Whiskers.”
This program focuses on a three-step process called trap/neuter/release, or TNR, for short.
“We have shifted our budget to start trying to deal with this problem,” Johnson said, and the word is getting out.
Purr Partners can help Franklin County residents get feral colonies or community cats spayed or neutered through Wandering Whiskers. The only caveat, Johnson said, is that the residents have to agree to take the cats back and continue to feed them.
Right now, they’re able to help 30-40 cats each month. The program has a Facebook page and can be contacted at Wanderingwhiskers21@yahoo.com.
Unlike dogs that come into heat twice a year, cats can come into heat every couple of months, which exacerbates the problem, Johnson said.
Purr Partners always needs volunteers to help out, whether it’s by fostering cats or simply educating the public. Johnson said the current mantra is “spay one stray.”
At any given time, Purr Partners has up to 250 cats available for adoption. There are about 50 volunteers dedicated to help foster the animals, socialize them and get them ready for adoption. There are another 10 or so who agree to be temporary fosters.
Three PetSmart locations across Wake County serve as adoption centers for Purr Partners and volunteers have meet and greets on the weekends for prospective cat owners at the PetSmarts in Wake Forest and in Raleigh on Capital Boulevard and Six Forks Road.
Visit www.purrpartners.org to learn more about becoming a volunteer or to make a donation.