KAUMAKANI — Greater Good Charities’ Good Fix Program is back on Kaua‘i providing spay and neuter cat clinics islandwide.
The clinics hope to lessen Kaua‘i’s cat population through trap, neuter and return (TNR) protocols and provide services to pet owners. Feral cats threaten native bird populations and spread disease.
Starting Wednesday, Good Fix will be operating a mobile clinic offering free spay and neuter surgeries, vaccinations and microchipping at 1 Kaumakani Ave. in Kaumakani. This clinic will last until Friday. The clinic will run from 8 a.m until 2 p.m. or until capacity is reached.
The clinic will move to the Anahola Marketplace from Feb. 6 to 8, also from 8 a.m to 2 p.m.
The clinics have the capacity to perform up to 100 surgeries per day.
This is significantly scaled-down from Good Fix’s October clinic that sterilized nearly 2,000 felines.
According to Laura Littlebear, director of Pet Programs at Good Fix, they scaled back so they could utilize a mobile clinic and get into communities most in need.
“The idea is that we can do some outreach in communities that maybe don’t have the capacity to bring their animals to us and be able to reach areas where the population is dense, (and) there’s a higher need,” Littlebear said.
There are limited options for spay and neuter services on Kaua‘i’s Westside, which is one of the reasons Good Fix prioritized Kaumakani, according to Littlebear.
Surgeries will be performed by a 10-person crew of volunteer veterinary doctors and technicians. The surgeries are quick and can be performed in under a minute for male cats and under five minutes for females.
Kaua‘i Community Cat Project is assisting with trapping feral cats to be spayed or neutered and then released. For more information about trapping, property owners can email goodfix@greatergood.org. Cats must be in functional carriers with a usable door. Only one cat is allowed per carrier. Hard-sided carriers are preferred for patient safety and comfort.
Owners are asked to stay in their vehicles and remain masked throughout the registration and drop-off process. More information is available at greatergood.org/good-fix-kauai or by calling 808-977-2860.
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Laurel Smith, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0424 or lsmith@thegardenisland.com.
