Support from the Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust, a KeyBank Trust, will fix 300 cats in Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties
INDIANAPOLIS – Up to 300 community cats in Northern Indiana will receive a spay/neuter surgery funded by Pet Friendly Services of Indiana thanks to a $25,000 contribution from the Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust, a KeyBank Trust. This is the fourth year Pet Friendly Services has received a grant from the Trust, fixing over 1,600 cats in the previous three years.
The grant will fund surgeries for three community cat organizations in Elkhart and St. Joseph counties: CatSnip Etc., Elkhart Feral Cat Coalition, and The Meow Mission, and will support their Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) programs.
“Funding surgeries for outdoor cats is critical to preventing shelter intake and overwhelming shelters that are already at-capacity,“ said Pet Friendly Services Executive Director Cheri Storms. “Community Cat programs work with neighborhoods to trap, neuter, vaccinate and return cats to ‘colony caretakers’ who agree to provide food and shelter to otherwise unwanted cats. These programs stabilize colony sizes and are very popular with community members.”
Funding Arrives Just in Time for The Meow Mission
“Receiving the spay/neuter certificates allows us to provide TNVR services to a population so much in need – mobile home communities,” said Jodi Aker, President of The Meow Mission. “These communities are typically low income and struggle to feed the cats, let alone think about spay/neuter. Trapping and neutering these cats is a large task, and one we’re happily able to do, thanks to help from Pet Friendly Services. All of us at Meow Mission are so grateful for the help, and so are the cats, they just don’t know it!”
Additional financial support for the projects like these across Indiana is provided by the proceeds of the Pet Friendly specialty license plate. This plate funds thousands of spay/neuter surgeries each year, helping every Indiana shelter become a zero kill. Learn more at www.PetFriendlyPlate.org.
###
Pet Friendly Services of Indiana is a statewide animal welfare organization whose mission is to eliminate the euthanasia of adoptable cats and dogs through financial assistance, education, and advocacy. Our small team stretches our dollars to serve as many animals as possible and to make permanent changes to benefit cats, dogs, and the people who love them. Pet Friendly Services receives no government funding and relies on donors, grants, fundraising and funds from the Pet Friendly Specialty License Plate. www.PetFriendlyServices.org
###
