Great Volunteers = Great Campaign!!

Our fifth annual spay neuter campaign ended in Holbox at Casa de Morelia on May 17th.  In addition to many familiar faces in our volunteer corps a number of new volunteers joined us.  We are so fortunate to have such a great group of dedicated people help us every year.  Without our volunteers nothing could be accomplished!

We started this years clinics on May 12th in Kantunilkin. We have visited Kantunilkin every year and have seen a growth in the number of animals every year. This year we had our largest one day clinic with a total 91 animals altered.

Sunday we drove to KM 80 which is a small village on the road to Cancun.  This town had some very sick dogs and was in desperate need of help.  We usually try not to go this far from Holbox but I understand why Morelia wanted us to visit KM 80.  We were able to help 51 animals.  The local official that organized our building and lunch honored us with a delicious Mayan specialty-a chicken soup that had a wonderful flavor.  We were also visited by this beautiful blue butterfly.

 

We learned the first year that everyone benefits from a day off after two intense days in the heat. Monday was our day off and everyone relaxed in their own way.  

San Angel is a small community located between Solferino and Kantunilkin. The sign says 850 inhabitants.  I had thought we might have 40 or 50 dogs come to the clinic.  Unexpectedly on Monday half of our veterinarians decided to leave for Merida which left us with four very dedicated and busy surgeons.  We had over 100 animals come to the clinic for surgery.  We decided to concentrate on adult females and made arrangements for the other puppies to be altered next week by Dr. Laura Bevilacqua from Holbox.  We were able to help 69 animals in San Angel.  With the prospect of many more being helped in the near future.   We were very thankful for a secure building as the heavens opened and it poured rain most of the day.  Tropical rains are a wee bit different then our Seattle rains!

We always like to hold the last day of clinics on Holbox at the Refugio. Morelia's Refugio is a wonderful spot with animals of all types being rehabilitated.  Those that can be returned to the wild are and those that can't be released are cared for or sent to other sanctuaries.   There are pelicans, raccoons, coati mundi, various birds, dogs, cats, rabbits and any other creature in need of care.  The house and grounds are kept clean and smell of disinfectant (very unusual in this area!). Morelia is an amazing woman that organizes the clinics for us and cares for all animals. We are so lucky to have her help.

 Esther feeding the pelicans with cats helping!!

Esther always serves us fresh limeade, various juices and a great lunch.  The rains came during lunch!  

We altered 48 animals on Holbox. 

One of two orphan mapaches.

The end of the clinics always brings about reflection.  We were able to help over 250 animals this year with prospects of many more being helped during the coming year.  In the last 4 years we have provided surgery for over 1250 animals and left supplies for many more to be altered.  We have shared supplies with groups in Merida, Playa del Carmine and Puerto Morelos.   We continue to believe that it is in the pets' best interest if we maintain standards as close to US standards as possible.  What does this mean?  It means that every animal has an autoclaved pack,  every animal has a new suture packet, every animal has an autoclaved drape, our surgical prep is very thorough, most animals are intubated and have iv catheters.  We do our best not to cut corners in anyway.  These animals are already compromised by parasites, nutrition, and living conditions.  Does this increase our costs per animal- absolutely but I think it is worth it.

Gearing up for 2012 clinics

Hola everyone!

May is fast approaching, and the team is getting ready. We are excited to have a wonderful group of volunteers this year, some veterans and some brand new. This year's clinic days are May 12 - 16th, so there's still time to get involved if you're interested in being part of our team.

If you're able to donate or want to volunteer, please visit our web site for more info.

Hasta la próxima!

¡Feliz Año Nuevo!

It is time to start thinking about 2011 clinics. Our clinics for 2011 will be held May 8, 9, 11, & 12. We hope to purchase another 30 spay packs, another autoclave and new clippers this year. Please consider a tax deductable donation to Isla Holbox Spay Neuter Project.

Ed and I will be attending the Merida Clinic in January again. The goal this year is 1500 animals!!

2010 Clinics a Huge Success

Our clinics for 2010 concluded on Wednesday May 12th. This year we were able to help 5 communities by providing free spay neuter services for their animals. The first two days of clinics our entire group was together in Kantunilkin. Kantunilkin is the government seat for the municipality of Lazaro Cardenas in the state of Quintana Roo. It has an estimated population of 6100 people.


We had many new volunteers this year so our first clinic on the 8th was a a training session for everyone as well as a very busy clinic. We altered 89 animals on May 8th. On the 9th the clinic ran like clock work with everyone understanding their jobs and getting right down to business. We unfortunately had fewer animals presented but were able to alter 68 animals during our second day.

May 10th is Mothers Day in Mexico and we always take the day off to rest and prepare for the next two days of clinics.

Tuesday we broke into two groups and headed to two small villages, Cedral and El Ideal. Both villages are Mayan. Maya is the common language in these villages. Many of the children are fluent in Spanish as well as Maya. Some also speak a little English. The dogs are very important to the Mayan people. They are greatly loved by their owners. The people and children were in and out of the clinics all day, as the doors were all open for ventilation. They find the whole process of our clinics very interesting. We make sure we treat the animals with respect as well as their owners. 54 animals were altered in El Ideal and 49 were altered in Cedral. On dog was sedated and had a growth removed from the corner of it's eye.

Wednesday the final day of clinics we again broke into two groups. One group went to Solferino and the other stayed on Holbox. We visited Solferino in 2008 but not in 2009. In Solferino the Ejido donates their building for us to use. It is a nice large area and well designed for a clinic space. 49 animals were altered in Solferino.

The Holbox clinic is held at Casa de Morelia. Morelia has done so much work on the house and grounds. There are many cages and carriers for the animals. The prep area is outside under a palapa roof, surgery is in the kitchen/living area and recovery is in a bedroom. The entire grounds are surrounded by a high fence so if an animal should become free of its carrier it can not escape. We altered 58 animals including a raccoon. We ran out of daylight and were not able to alter all of the rescued kittens that are currently being cared for by Morelia. The local vet on Holbox, Luis, will alter them next week.

We altered a total of 363 animals this year. We have left supplies so that at least 100 more can be altered in our absence. This was a very successful campaign.

2010 Clinic Underway

This is a long over due update. We were so busy before we left that I just didn't a chance to write. We arrived on Holbox Monday May 3. For the first time all of our supplies were cleared through customs. We had one bag that was delayed but it was delivered to us on the 4th.

Friday evening we hosted a get together at the house we are staying in. Our good friends, Alejandro Vega and Elia brought many delicious snacks. They always are so supportive of our efforts and help us in many ways.

The weather is very hot and humid. Perfect for sitting on the beach or swimming a little hot for working.

The first two days our clinics are in Kantunilkin. Yesterday after a slow start the day went well. 89 animals were altered. It is so rewarding to have the opportunity to help these animals and people. We had many puppies brought to the clinic. They can now live a life without contributing further to the over population problem.

More later.

Planning Underway

Our clinic is just a month away. We are busy ordering supplies and planning. This year Dr Marilyn and Dr Sherrie will again join us. They both have been with us every year. We can not thank them enough. The great staff from Planned Pethood Mexico in Merida, Drs. Tony, Nelson and Lilliana will also join us for the third year. Dr Aimee Castor from Seattle will come for the first time as will Dr Jeff Young from Colorado. Jeff and his organization Planned Pethood International support international spay neuter and has helped us from our conception. We are looking forward to a very productive clinic!!