Pound Friends Seek Help For New Cat Clinic

LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER This kitten hangs out in the cat playroom at the Prairie Grove Animal Pound. Friends of Prairie Grove Pound is raising money to build a cat clinic for low-cost spay and neuter services.
LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER This kitten hangs out in the cat playroom at the Prairie Grove Animal Pound. Friends of Prairie Grove Pound is raising money to build a cat clinic for low-cost spay and neuter services.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- The non-profit organization Friends of Prairie Grove Pound hopes the city will soon be one of only a few in the state with its own clinic to offer low-cost spay and neuter services for cats, whether a cat is a pet, one that roams the community or is feral.

A person who requested to remain anonymous donated a 3,000-square-foot metal building kit and the group thinks it needs to raise around $50,000 to finish the project, said Sharon Glover, a member of Friends' board of directors.

Donations for the new cat clinic building can be made in the following ways:

Arvest Bank: “FOPGP Building Fund.”

Mail to: Friends of Prairie Grove Pound, 314 E. Parks St., Prairie Grove, AR 72753.

Online: gofundme.com/prairi… or youcaring.com/frien….

In the past two years, Friends of Prairie Grove Pound along with NWA Community Cat Project have spayed or neutered more than 1,000 cats with its monthly cat clinics held in the city's maintenance facility. Glover said the city has been gracious to allow them to use this space but it's not convenient for city workers.

"We've wanted a separate building for some time," Glover said.

A new building will meet several needs. It would be a modern cat clinic with space to store materials needed for spay and neuter procedures. The Friends could have a meet and greet room for cat adoptions. In addition, Glover said it would allow the organization to offer low-cost spay and neuter services for dogs in the future.

Donations toward the project have been slow and Glover hopes to see them pick up. She said the Friends is asking for cash donations or volunteer work from those skilled in particular areas, such as plumbing, electricity, construction.

Glover said the cat clinics have touched many people in this region. Those who have used the cat clinics have come from Northwest Arkansas, south Missouri and Oklahoma. The procedures only cost $10 for spay or neuter and $5 for shots.

They usually have 50 cats per clinic and reservations for spots fill up within two days.

"Anyone who needs this help can get it," Glover said, adding, "There's no way they can get it for that cost anywhere else."

In addition, the Friends organization traps feral and community cats to be spayed and neutered at the clinics.

She believes the clinics are making a difference at the city's animal pound. The percentage of cat intakes at the pound decreased by 40 percent from 2016 to 2017, and Glover said she thinks part of that is because of the number of feral and community cats being spayed or neutered.

The city has offered land for the building next to its animal pound and also has agreed to grade the land. To finish the project, other work required will be to pour a foundation, erect the building, frame the inside of the building and install insulation, plumbing, electricity and other needs.

Several accounts have been set up for people to make tax-deductible donations.

There's a building fund account at Arvest Bank. Donations to this should be designated "FOPGP Building Fund." Donations also can be mailed to Friends of Prairie Grove Pound, 314 E. Parks St., Prairie Grove, AR 72753.

Other places to donate are gofundme.com/prairie-grove-spayneuter-clinic or youcaring.com/friendsbuildingfund.

General News on 02/07/2018