CARIBOU, Maine — Dr. Beth Sperry and her medical team from the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland tended to 180 cats in four days during a free spay/neuter clinic in Caribou in February.
The event was sponsored by Halfway Home Pet Rescue with grant funds from the Maine Community Foundation Aroostook County Fund and the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation.
This clinic provided medical services cats and kittens over four “very long” days, said Norma Milton, HHPR director. Medical services included spaying or neutering, vaccinations, 30-day flea prevention, worming, ear cleaning and ear mite treatment, nail trimming, and a dental checkup.
MCF and the Sewall Foundation also provide funding for the free Pet Food Pantry for struggling families in communities throughout Aroostook County.
“HHPR is delighted to have this wonderful partnership with ARLG, located in Westbrook, and this great animal medical team has promised to come back in early summer 2021,” Milton said.
“A special thank you to Caribou Parks & Rec for the use of their wellness center game room and to all the volunteers who worked at the clinic or supported our clinic with donations of food and time,” she added. “We could not do this mission without you.”
Halfway Home Pet Rescue plans to schedule another free spay/neuter clinic in early summer for Aroostook County families only.
Those interested should email norma@halfwayhomepetrescue.org for an application for the clinic. Facebook notices and text messages are not accepted or answered, and the telephone fills quickly. Only email will give one a guarantee of placement in the clinic, according to Milton.
Pet food can be given out at the Caribou and Fort Fairfield police stations and is available in Presque Isle through the Aroostook Area Agency on Aging Meals on Wheels program for shut-in families.
