Local vet clinics taking part in pet food drive
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/11/2017 (2859 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
In hopes of spreading the Christmas cheer to accommodate cats and dogs, Manitoba veterinary clinics are urging the public to help them feed cuddly fuzz-balls in need this holiday season.
Several veterinary clinics throughout Manitoba are collecting food for pets as part of the Manitoba Veterinary Medical Association’s Annual Pet Food Drive.
In Westman, these include the Brandon Animal Clinic, Brandon Hills Veterinary Clinic, the Grand Valley Animal Clinic, the Carberry Small Animal Veterinary Clinic and the Dauphin Veterinary Clinic.
Each of these clinics selects a local service group or two that they will send the fresh, unopened food and monetary donations they collect by the program’s Dec. 21 deadline.
It’s a longtime effort Brandon Hills Veterinary Clinic veterinarian and owner Jay Thrush said that he and his staff is always eager to participate in, which makes sense given that their shared profession consists of helping animals.
Thrush said that he feels for the cats and dogs who are stuck at shelters instead of living their lives in their forever homes.
The Brandon Hills Veterinary Clinic sends the food they collect to the Brandon Humane Society and Strays that Can’t Pay.
The Carberry Small Animal Veterinary Clinic sends their food to the Neepawa area-based Cats TNR and Rescue and the Carberry Cat Rescue; two organizations that are stretched to capacity, and which both have intake freezes in place as a result of their kitten overloads.
“Right now, we’re not sitting too good,” Cats TNR and Rescue director Linda Desjardins said, adding that she’s very happy to learn that people are collecting food for the organization.
The organization currently has more than 40 cats in foster homes, and they’re also feeding three colonies of feral cats that they have spayed and neutered.
A core volunteer group of six people and small base of casual supporters keep the non-profit organization running, although Desjardins said that they’d do more if they had greater resources.
Turning away cats that she knows need homes is a heartbreaking task, she said. “The calls don’t stop.”
While the bulk of their expenses are for veterinary bills, Desjardins said that any food they receive helps offset costs elsewhere, and that any support they get is well-received.
Cathy Dyck founded Carberry Cat Rescue approximately one year ago as a result of a kitten overpopulation issue she noticed in the community.
Since then, the volunteer organization has taken in more than 65 cats, and currently have six kittens and six adult cats they are providing food and litter for.
“We’re just kind of plugging away,” she said. “We’re a small organization, and a lot of people don’t know about us.”
She said that they’re receptive to any form of help people are able to provide, but that their greatest need at the moment is kitten food.
» tclarke@brandonsun.com
» Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB