PawPrints Spay/Neuter Clinic

12/18/2024

We love Google Reviews (especially good ones 😹!)

If you've been to our Clinic please consider leaving us a review. We want people to know that our Clinic is top-notch and that people trust us with their outdoor feline friends. 🐱

https://g.page/r/CebxV57DysJYEAE/review

Thank you! Meow!

12/10/2024

ICYMI:

Our board president and PawPrints Spay/Neuter Clinic Director Sarah Downs was on the news last weekend! We wanted to spread the word and share the great work we're doing with Neighborhood Cat Advocates.

We are so thankful to Action News Now for taking the time to meet with us and sharing this "paw"-sitive story about our Clinic with the rest of Chico (and beyond!)

If you need help with getting stray or feral cats spayed or neutered, please fill out our online form found at www.ncachico.org. If you can't afford the $40 copay, please talk to us! We would rather get these cats altered than not.

If you're looking to volunteer at an organization that is boots on the ground and really making a difference in the community, let us know by filling out our online volunteer application here: https://www.pawprintsclinic.org/volunteer.html #/

Cat Spaying at local clinic

11/05/2024

PawPrints Spay/Neuter Clinic is looking for experienced Vet Assistants!

If you have a passion for spaying and neutering as many stray and feral cats as possible, while providing top-notch veterinary care, get in touch with us!

We are only open on the weekends so this position does require weekend availability. You do not have to work every weekend as we have other assistants on staff that rotate shifts.

We are looking for hard-working, caring individuals with excellent attention to detail and flexible availability.

We are a high-volume spay/neuter clinic, working Saturdays and Sundays back to back at times, around 60-70 cats over the weekend, depending on the vets. We have different (AMAZING) vets that rotate, so you get to work with all kinds of different people!

YOU pick the days you want to work - you are not expected to work back to back weekend days (unless you want to!) Time off and flexible schedules are NOT a problem - we just need more people to fill these gaps!

If you're interested, send your resume to [email protected]. We hope to hear from you soon!

Please share as well! Meow!

09/30/2024

Did you know?

Did you know that each and every cat that comes to our Clinic for spay/neuter, no matter the size, s*x, or personal history, gets a "warmie" post-surgery? It's true.

What's a "warmie", you ask? lt's our beloved term for what is essentially a homemade heating pad. These are little fleece bags filled with uncooked rice that we warm up in the microwave and place against the bodies of the cats while they recuperate (with a barrier, of course, to avoid cross-contamination).

We do this because as cats come out of anesthesia, they have a more difficult time regulating their body temperature (just like hoomans). When the rice bag stops being warm, we replace it with a fresh, warm one, and then we pull it out once the kitties are starting to move. We continue to monitor them after that, because sometimes their body temperatures starts to drop again.

Most anyone who has had surgery remembers waking up to warmth. We want our kitties to wake up feeling the same. And we don't discriminate - we consider all cats that come through our doors as equals, no matter how fractious or stinky or scrappy looking. We believe ALL kitties deserve the royal treatment at our Clinic.

Pictured here is a 4.5 lb feral kitten, resting comfortably (and warmly) after her spay. If you're interested in helping us keep our kitties warm and being part of our mission to spay/neuter as many community cats as possible, please consider signing up to be a volunteer!

https://form.jotform.com/241266633421047

09/27/2024

Did you know that we microchip every cat that comes to our Clinic?

We are often asked why. There are two main reasons:

1. If any of our cats ever bites someone, the microchip is associated with medical records, and in those medical records is proof of rabies vaccine. That rabies vaccine is literally a lifesaver, because a cat bite without that is almost always an automatic euthanasia - so that the cat can be tested for rabies.

2. Reunification, like this example here. Most of the time, when we receive a call about one of our cats, it's because the cat is deceased and they (usually animal control) want to make sure the owner/finder is notified. So, one of the unfortunate things we have to do is call people to notify them that the cat they cared about is no longer alive.

But today, our microchip brought about a happy ending, and this little kitten made her way home, alive.

Microchips save lives!

09/09/2024

Each weekend, we perform roughly 50-60 spays and neuters for stray and feral (community) cats. In August, we performed 170 spays and neuters - a new record for our Clinic.

We are quickly approaching 1,500 spays and neuters since we opened last year (this includes a 4-month closure after our original veterinarian, Dr. Vinson, passed away). Not bad for a Clinic that only operates on the weekends!

Do you want to be part of this amazing mission to spay and neuter as many community cats as we can? Sign up to volunteer! We would love some more help, and bonus - you can be proud to say you volunteer at our Clinic!

Here is the link to our volunteer application: https://form.jotform.com/241266633421047

Even if you can't volunteer, please share!

Please click the link to complete this form.

08/23/2024

Dr. Hanson stepped up to be our premise vet after our previous premise vet, Dr. Vinson, passed away. This gave us the opportunity to reopen our Clinic after 4 months of being closed.

Dr. Hanson has been a cherished member of the animal rescue community for a long time, as many of you may know. This loss will be felt deeply by everyone that worked side by side with her, and by all who work toward improving the lives and welfare of animals that would otherwise go unnoticed. Dr. Hanson made our work possible, and for that we are profoundly and eternally grateful.

Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones.

We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of one of our own, Dr. Suzanne Hanson, who passed away this week. Dr. Hanson received her veterinary degree from UC Davis and went on to open her own practice here in Chico, Animal Health Care Practice. She joined Mangrove Hospital a few years later and then became a part of Valley Oak Veterinary Center in 2011. Dr. Hanson was an incredible veterinarian and skilled surgeon. She was a dedicated mentor to new veterinarians as well as a passionate advocate for our community serving tirelessly with the City of Chico and Northwest SPCA. Dr. Hanson’s legacy lives on in the countless lives she touched and her unwavering commitment to veterinary medicine. Her absence is already deeply felt and she will be profoundly missed as a colleague, a mentor and a dear friend.

08/19/2024

The pictures don't do this weekend any justice whatsoever. The first couple of photos are from our lobby because both of our intake rooms were full today. The rest of the pictures are from the two very full intake rooms, and one sweet boy resting comfortably with his little stuffie. We did an intake of 37 (!!) cats today, three of which were already spayed. When that happens, we make sure they are in good health, given vaccines, a microchip, and flea treatment. So all told we did 34 spays and neuters today. That was just today.

Yesterday we did an intake of 27 cats, one of which was already spayed, so a total of 26 spays and neuters were performed.

Which brings our weekend total to: 60 spays and neuters! Wowza!

Thank you to the kind, compassionate, and dedicated veterinarians who performed surgeries this weekend: Dr. Thompson and Dr. Darling! ❤️

And of course, thank you to our incredible staff and volunteers who help keep our beloved clinic running like a well-oiled machine. 🐱

Peep the comments for a video from one of the intake rooms today, where all the cats were swapping war stories and plotting their escapes.

A "catcophony", if you will.

/sorrynotsorry

08/16/2024

PawPrints Spay/Neuter Clinic is looking for experienced Vet Assistants!

If you have a passion for spaying and neutering as many stray and feral cats as possible, while providing top-notch veterinary care, get in touch with us!

We are only open on the weekends so this position does require weekend availability. You do not have to work every weekend as we have other assistants on staff that rotate shifts.

We are looking for hard-working, caring individuals with excellent attention to detail and flexible availability.

If you're interested, send your resume to [email protected]. We hope to hear from you soon!

Please share as well! Meow!

08/05/2024

It's been over a month since our last post, but that doesn't mean we've been slacking off! Last month, we (quietly) celebrated surpassing 1,000 spays/neuters at our Clinic, and as of today we are at 1,165!

Here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks.

We'd be remiss if we didn't mention one of the most important aspects of TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) and of our spay/neuter clinic ... VACCINES!

We applied and were approved for FVRCP vaccines through the Petco Love program. Being given the opportunity to vaccinate more cats has been such a huge benefit to our community cats. We are proud to be a and want all community cats to be .

Thank you, Petco!

06/25/2024

Over the weekend, our clinic performed 54 spays and neuters. 32 Saturday, 22 Sunday. We also got to see a former wound patient for a checkup, which is coming along nicely thanks to his loving foster Mom (Carole Foley). We also helped untangle some neonates from their umbilical cord.

We had two big tom's come in too - one clocking in at 12.9 lbs, the other 13.6 lbs. All muscle.

06/12/2024

Want to volunteer your time with a spay/neuter clinic in Chico that is making a huge difference in the lives of stray and feral cats? Look no further!

We are in need of help, mostly in the front of house, where we do intake in the morning (on Sundays usually, occasionally Saturdays), recovery (watching cats as they come out of surgery), some cleaning, laundry, etc.

We also need people in the afternoon, who also help in recovery, cleanup, laundry, and helping people when they pick up their cats.

You will be on your feet, always busy, and you'll be right in the middle of the action. Oh yeah, and there's CATS! Sometimes there are even kittens! 😻

If you're interested, or know someone who might be, please fill out our volunteer application here: https://www.pawprintsclinic.org/ #/ (hit the 'volunteer' link at the top)

Make sure you select 'Front' when the question "Do you want to volunteer in the front, or in the back?" comes up.

Please share! Our mission is important and we could use the help.

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We are also looking for Vet Assistants! If you'd like to be considered for a paid position, please email your resume to [email protected]. You must be professionally trained in this field to qualify.
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PawPrints Spay/Neuter Clinic is a program under the Companion Animal Welfare Alliance non-profit umbrella. Other programs included are: Neighborhood Cat Advocates PawPrints Thrift Boutique...

06/11/2024

Some pictures from last weekend. In the first picture, you can clearly see where milk is present under this mama's skin! The lighter parts are where the milk is; the darker spot is just dried up!

We also helped an already spayed, already microchipped older stray cat by removing a bad tooth. She also got some fluids, flea treatment, rabies vaccine, and even some brushing to get some burrs and mats out.

Finally was a tom cat with a big ol' battle wound. He's recovering at a trapper's house before coming back for a checkup and then released back to his old neighborhood.

Never a dull moment! We love sending these cats out in better shape than they came in. ❤️

05/20/2024

05/13/2024

A warning to those with sensitive stomachs - these pictures are not easy to look at.

One of the unfortunate aspects of cats who call the outdoors their home is that they sometimes encounter health issues that an everyday housecat could potentially be treated for. In this case, a severe case of something called Plasma Cell Pododermatitis ("Pillow Foot").

We originally thought this poor cat's foot pad had been ripped away from her foot somehow, because we could only catch glimpses of it from a distance. However, once she was anesthetized, it became painfully clear just how bad her condition was.

This poor thing, if not for the care of the person that first spotted her, would've undoubtedly died outside because of these painful feet of hers. As you can see, she also developed ulcers on her face, and upon examining her abdomen, the veterinarian on staff felt unusual lumps. We made the decision to humanely euthanize her, which is never an easy choice.

We wanted to share this as a reminder that cats outdoors, although generally able to adapt and live happily and healthily, don't always end up that lucky. If you see a kitty that needs medical attention, please don't ignore them. You may be the angel that little kitty needs.

05/09/2024

Ear tipping saves lives!

We often hear from people who don't want their neighborhood stray or feral cat ear tipped. We think a lot of this is related to lack of education on the subject, so we came up with this handy guide explaining the process and the why behind it!

Long story short - ear tipping saves lives!

05/08/2024

Interested in volunteering at PawPrints Spay/Neuter Clinic and being part of this vital community service? Fill out our volunteer application here: https://form.jotform.com/241266633421047

Most questions will be answered by visiting the link, but if you have questions that are not on the form, please ask them here.

We would love to have you join us!

Please click the link to complete this form.

05/06/2024

21 spays and neuters performed today. We had our second biggest cat come in at a whopping 14 lbs! We just love the big tom cats with their big fat cheeks. (Pictured with vet assistant Briana here).

We've been fortunate enough to have volunteers that are training in veterinary medicine (RVT's and Vet Assistants). Our Clinic gives them the experience they need to excel in their schooling! (New volunteer Estefania in the fourth picture, drawing up vaccines).

We also had a new volunteer join us in the front, where intake, recovery, checkout, and cleanup happens. We rely on our volunteers in so many ways. We'll soon be sharing a link so you can sign up to help us do this incredibly important work. Stay tuned for that!

In the meantime, thanks to all of our amazing volunteers for everything they do for the cats of this community. 😻🐈🐾🐱