PAWS of Chinook holds first spay and neuter clinic

PAWS of Chinook hosted its first spay and neuter clinic Saturday and Sunday at the town’s Girl Scout House with the assistance of Spay Montana, where veterinarians and technicians performed the surgeries and provided vaccinations and microchips to about a hundred animals over two days.

PAWS of Chinook Board President and Shelter Manager Alissa Hewitt said Saturday the clinic was going very well, and will hopefully be the first of many, with their next desired location being Harlem.

Customers brought in their dogs and cats, which were provided drugs to calm the animals and anesthetics before conducting the surgeries, which Hewitt said were handled by experienced professionals from Spay Montana which recruits veterinarians from all over the state.

“(There’s) a lot of experience in this room,” she said.

She said the organization has high standards and requires specialized training, making clinics like this run smoothly.

Special care was taken to comfort the animals as they emerged from their sleep and make sure they felt calm and safe before they were sent home with their owners along with instructions for how to take care of them in the wake of their operation including advice about feeding, monitoring their incisions and making sure they don’t injure themselves.

Hewitt said the slots for the clinic were filled in advance, so extra time and care could be provided to animals which may be pregnant or have other complicating factors.

She said all the standard vaccines were being offered and microchipping the animal, which cost $20, would help recoup the $4,200 spent to make the event happen.

Spaying and neutering were done for free.

Hewitt said Chinook doesn’t have have much of an issue with strays at the moment, but PAWS’ general mission to prevent and address over population is furthered by events like this.

Also, she said, this clinic will give PAWS an idea of what needs to be done in the future, especially in the neighboring town of Harlem, which she said is in much worse shape when it comes to overpopulation.

“It’s to the point where kids, when they’re waiting for their parents to pick them up at the park, they’re up on the slides because the dogs won’t get them there,” Hewitt said.

She said PAWS staff will consult with the Spay Montana technicians after the event to see what can be improved and what went well in preparation for future work which is still in the very early planning stages.

She said the issue of overpopulation is a matter of safety for humans and for the animals, and PAWS of Chinook is trying to help alleviate the issue as much as they can.

Hewitt said PAWS of Chinook offers spay and neuter services year-round, but clinics like this really help.

She also said she wanted to thank Rad’s Deli & Pizza for providing lunches to staff at the event, the Chinook High School Honors Society for making breakfast for them and for making the rice-socks to comfort the post-operation cats, as well as Ace Hardware of Chinook for providing supplies, and AmericInn of Havre for comping two nights for all of the Spay Montana vets who traveled to the area for the clinic.

She also thanked the volunteers for their time and hard work, including her husband, Edwin, for helping with the microchipping.

Past, Present and Future of PAWS

Hewitt said PAWS of Chinook is in a good place these days overall, but it still is looking for more volunteers. She said they have enough regular volunteers to cover all their bases, but especially during summer time many of them want to take breaks and better manage compassion fatigue so they’re still on the lookout for back up.

She said volunteering can be as simple as taking a dog for a walk in the morning, but they are always looking for people with time to spare for taking care of animals in the shelter.

She said PAWS of Chinook was on the verge of closing due to a lack of volunteers two years ago when she joined up, a problem she has since helped remedy, but more is always better.

Thankfully, Hewitt said, the organization’s funds are not an issue thanks to the people of Chinook and surrounding areas, but people are busy and it’s sometimes hard to find people with the time and energy to help.

“Financial support is never an issue for us because this community is amazing,” she said. “It’s because of them that we’re able to do things like this. But volunteers is a different story.”

She said while the shelter has been able to maintain an average length of say under 30 days, the kennels are often full, and she finds herself having to ask people to delay surrenders until she can clear some space.

While Hewitt said the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t had a dramatic effect on PAWS of Chinook overall, it has delayed some adoptions to people in Canada due to the closing of the border.

However, she said, the organization continues to see demand from as far away as Washington, as well as Colorado, Idaho and Wyoming.