Dear FixNation Friend,

Homeless cats need your help! You may be wondering why your support is so urgently needed at this time. It’s simple: You can help end the suffering.

Right now, there are more than a million homeless cats and kittens living in Los Angeles, and 40,000 cats are killed in our city and county shelters each year.

FixNation is a nonprofit organization that fixes homeless cats as part of a Trap-Neuter-Return program or “TNR” for short. TNR means cats are fixed so they cannot breed and are then returned to live out their lives on the streets. It’s not ideal, but it’s the best we can do. If we do nothing, their numbers will grow and the killing will continue.

Our mission is to end this cycle of suffering by providing free spay/neuter surgery and basic medical care for L.A.’s stray and feral cats. Our clinic is the first of its kind in the nation, operating full-time and providing free services for homeless cats. We fix more than 17,000 cats each year. It costs $1.5M annually to deliver these services to cats in need.

You’ve shown how much you care about homeless cats. You don’t like any more than we do that innocent cats die every day in L.A. shelters. So we’re reaching out to you. Your gift will help reduce the number of homeless cats in Los Angeles, and in turn save cats’ lives.

Please make a generous gift to FixNation today. Your donation, no matter the size, will help us maintain our full-time veterinary clinic to help homeless cats. Please donate today.

Thank you, we appreciate all you do for the animals.

Sincerely,

FixNation is a non-profit organization providing free spay/neuter services for homeless stray and feral cats. We also offer low-cost spay/neuter services for tame pet cats. Our goal is to humanely reduce the number of homeless cats throughout Los Angeles by sterilizing as many as possible.

FixNation supports Trap-Neuter-Return, or TNR for short. TNR is a community-based program where concerned citizens humanely trap feral cats, have them spayed or neutered, and then return them to the exact location where they were trapped so they can be cared for and live out their natural lives. We loan out humane traps for free to the public, plus we provide training on how to properly and safely TNR. We make it as easy for you as possible to help the homeless cats in your neighborhood.

Our “Free Feral Program” for Homeless Stray & Feral Cats

FixNation offers free spay/neuter services for homeless stray and feral cats. Under our “Free Feral Program,” all homeless cats who will be eartipped for identification purposes will receive the following free services at the time of surgery:

• Spay or neuter surgery
• Physical exam
• Rabies vaccine
• Feline distemper vaccine (FVRCP)
• Revolution – to treat fleas, mange, ear mites, hookworms and roundworms
• Pain medication
• Fluids
• Antibiotic
• Droncit injection – for tapeworms, only as needed
• Limited medical treatment
• Lots of TLC!

The eartip is the universal symbol that an outdoor or free-roaming cat has been fixed. It is done while the cat is under anesthesia, is relatively painless for the cat, and does not significantly alter their beauty. We also go one step further and apply a bit of pain medication paste to the freshly tipped ear, to make it even more comfortable for the cat.

Eartip

We can do small eartips for any homeless cats or kittens who you may be trying to adopt out and our services will still be free, provided the cat or kitten is indeed homeless. Just make sure to request a small eartip when you check in if this is the case.

You do not need to live within the city of Los Angeles in order to bring cats to our clinic. We will service cats from any area, provided the cats can be safely transported to and from our facility.

Click here to get started with our “Free Feral Program” today

Tame Pet Cats

FixNation offers low-cost spay/neuter services for tame pet cats who are not being eartipped. The cost of a female/spay is $55 and a male/neuter is $40.

We also offer the following additional services for tame cats while they are here for spay/neuter surgery:

• Rabies vaccine – $8
• Distemper vaccine (FVRCP) – $8
• Revolution (flea treament and dewormer) – $20
• Microchipping – $25
• Feline Leukemia/FIV combo testing – $25 for cats not being eartipped
• Nail trims (tame cats only) – $5

Please be aware that our additional services are only provided at the time the cat is here for spay/neuter surgery. Since our main mission is to humanely reduce the number of homeless cats in Los Angeles, this is where we concentrate our time and attention. We do offer low-cost monthly vaccine and microchip clinics, in case your cat is already fixed and you are interested in vaccines or microchips only.

Click here to get started and make a tame cat appointment

Let’s face it, cats are part of our community. Both the ones who call the outdoors their home and the ones who live inside our houses. TNR starts with people just like you. When you decide to take action to help the cats within our community, or even fix your own cat, you help to build a better community for all.

Low-Cost Clinics In and Around LA

These clinics are not free, but they are low-cost with extremely reasonable, affordable rates for both dogs and tame cats. Sometimes they run free promotions for specific zip codes at different times of the year. Call ahead for details on pricing and to book an appointment.

Clinico – three locations: Pico Rivera/Downey, San Pedro, East San Fernando Valley.
888-WE-SPAY-LA (888-937-7295)  ~  www.clinico.org

SPCA-LA Spay/Neuter Clinic – Downtown Los Angeles
888-364-7729  ~  www.spcala.com

Angel Dogs Foundation - Serving the Palmdale, Lancaster and Bakersfield areas
888-504-7729  ~  www.angeldogsfoundation.org

www.spaycalifornia.com

This extensive online directory gives a thorough listing of all available low-cost spay/neuter clinics and vets for all of California. The listing is searchable by city, county and zip code. It provides information for where you can get dogs, tame cats, feral cats and rabbits fixed. Just go to www.spaycalifornia.com and enter your zip code to get a listing of the facilities closest to you. In most cases, the site also lists the prices and list of services that the vet or vet clinic provides. Be sure to call clinics ahead of time to confirm prices, though, and always book advance reservations. Don’t forget to ask the vet or clinic if they take City vouchers, too!

LA City Discount Vouchers for Spay/Neuter

Residents within the city limits of Los Angeles are eligible for up to three City vouchers a year, each good for $30 off the price of the spay or neuter surgery. People who show proof of low-income may be eligible for $70 City vouchers. All vouchers are subject to availability. Many vets and vet clinics will accept these vouchers towards the cost of spay or neuter, but some do not. If you plan on using a City voucher, ask the vet or clinic if they accept them when you call to book the appointment. Vouchers can be picked up at any City animal shelter location. Go to the LAAS website for more details and for shelter locations.

Free, Mobile Spay/Neuter Clinics for Low-Income (Limited Availability)

There are two mobile spay/neuter vans that travel around to various parts of Los Angeles each month. They offer free spay/neuter services for dogs and tame cats for low-income families. Proof of low income and advance reservations are required. Check out their websites for more details and for this month’s schedules.

Amanda Foundation
888.349.7388 ~ www.amandafoundation.org

Sam Simon Foundation
888-364-7729 ~ www.samsimonfoundation.com

Financial Assistance to Help with the Cost of Spay/Neuter

The following organizations may be able to provide some financial assistance towards the overall cost of the spay or neuter surgery. This may be in addition to any City vouchers you have. The pledge money goes directly to the vet or clinic and the organization will need to call in the pledge to the vet prior to your appointment. These organizations can also refer you to low-cost spay/neuter facilities, if you are having troubles finding any in your area.

Actors & Others for Animals
818-755-6045  ~  www.actorsandothers.com

Concerned People for Animals
805-482-6587  ~  www.concernedpeopleforanimals.org

Pet Assistance Foundation
877-722-9738  ~  www.petassistancefoundation.org

Download the Dog Spay/Neuter Resource flyer

Download the Top 10 Reasons to Spay or Neuter Your Pet (English and Spanish)

FixNation and Valley Vet Non Profit (VVNP) are teaming up this summer to bring you even more days when you can get your feral cats fixed for free.

Starting in August and going through December 2010, VVNP will be open on the 2nd Monday of every month for a day dedicated to fixing feral cats. This is an extra day above and beyond when VVNP is normally open, as a way to expand how many feral cats are being fixed within our community each month. VVNP will fix up to 50 feral cats on these special Mondays, and the program will be sponsored by FixNation.

This program kicks off on Monday, August 9th. The spay/neuter services will be done at VVNP’s clinic at 1659 East Los Angeles Avenue in Simi Valley.

The same great “free feral program” that you’ve come to know from FixNation still applies for these Mondays, including:

- Spay/neuter surgery
- Physical exam
- FVRCP distemper combo vaccine
- Rabies vaccine
- Revolution (for fleas, hookworms and roundworms)
- Eartip
- Antibiotic
- Fluids
- Pain medication
- Droncit as needed (for tapeworms)
- Lots of TLC!

VVNP will also offer FeLV/FIV testing and microchipping for an additional fee. FeLV/FIV combo tests are $20, FeLV only tests are $10, microchips are $25 and hernia repairs are $15. Convenia injections, if recommended by the vet, are $25.

Only feral cats will be booked on these special Mondays, and all cats will be eartipped. Any tame companion cats or friendly strays should be scheduled at either FixNation or VVNP during normal business hours.

Feral cats must come in to VVNP in humane traps and be fully covered (no carriers or other containers please). Drop off time is between 8:00 – 8:30 a.m. and pick up is between 2:00 – 2:30 pm. Appointments must be made in advance, and trappers can book appointments by calling VVNP directly at 805-584-3823.

Both FixNation and Valley Vet Non Profit are very excited to be bringing you this new outreach program. We hope it helps both the trappers and the cats out in the West Valley.

FixNation will continue to look for new and creative ways to bring more spay/neuter services to other parts Los Angeles. We firmly believe that public access to free spay/neuter services is a critical component in homeless cat management. Collectively, we can make a difference.

Ericka has been working in news for over ten years. Born in Peru, Ericka moved to the United States at a young age. She graduated from Rider University with a communications degree. She then set off working for big industry names like Univision, Fox 5’s “Good Day New York” and WSVN in Miami and Telemundo 47 in New York. Today,  Ericka is the evening weather anchor for Telemundo 52 in LA, one of the largest Spanish television networks in the world. In 2009 Ericka earned her meteorology degree and earned the prestigious American Meteorology Society seal of approval. Her personality, versatility and knowledge have gained her respect and a huge following. Ericka’s Photo galleries and Internet segments such as “Ericka Te lo Cuenta” are amongst the most trafficked in the Telemundo website.

Ericka joined forces with FixNation because of her love of cats and strong desire to help the community at large. Sharing a common vision of “No More Homeless Cats in LA”, Ericka is using her vivacious personality and tapping in to her wide fan base to help drive home the importance of spay/neuter and to explain what Trap-Neuter-Return is all about.

“Many people in the Spanish-speaking community have a great love of animals and want to help the cats within their community, but simply don’t know about TNR or what resources are available to help them locally” says Ericka. “By letting people know about FixNation and the free spay/neuter services they offer, I can help show people how easy it is to make a positive difference in the world around them.”

Ericka visited FixNation with her camera crew and showcased the coverage and story on her heavily trafficked Telemundo website. She also invited FixNation’s Spanish-speaking team members to join her on air, with tame kitten in tow, to talk to her audience about free-roaming cats and the benefits of TNR.

“We couldn’t be more pleased that Ericka is helping us reach the Spanish-speaking community,” says Kim Senn, VP of Operations at FixNation. “Ericka is an extremely popular, influential woman with fans who follow her everywhere she goes. We are thrilled to have her help in reaching out to the Hispanic community on the importance of Trap-Neuter-Return for our community cats.”

More exciting plans are in store in throughout 2010 for Ericka and FixNation to team up on educational outreach projects for the Spanish-speaking community. Together, through education and increased awareness, they plan to turn the tide on the plight of homeless cats and to reduce the pet overpopulation in Los Angeles, helping both people and animals alike lead better lives.

To get to know Ericka Pino, go to:

http://www.Telemundo52.com/erickapino

To view her gallery of FixNation, go to:

http://www.telemundo52.com/noticias/5868721/detail.html

Best Friends Catnippers dates for 2011 (all Sundays):

• January 9
• March 13
• May 15
• July 10
• September 11
• November 13

All clinics will be held at FixNation, 7680 Clybourn Ave., L.A., 91352.

An initial application and reservations are required in advance. Please do not bring cats to the clinic without a confirmed reservation. To complete an initial Feral Cat Application, go to the “Getting Started” box on the homepage of this website, or a copy of the application is also in the lower right “Forms and Resources” section. Please specify in the application that you are interested in Catnippers reservations.

If you are one of our regular caregivers and have been to either FixNation or Catnippers before with feral cats, please email Liz Cava for reservations at liz@fixnation.org.

Our Catnippers clinics are specifically dedicated to feral cats and kittens. All cats coming to the Best Friends Catnippers clinics are required to be homeless, feral or stray and will be eartipped. Tame cats and kittens should be scheduled through FixNation during normal business hours.

Our Catnippers clinics are staffed entirely by volunteers, including volunteer licensed vets and vet techs. We are always on the lookout for new volunteers to join our team. If you are interested in volunteering for an upcoming Catnippers clinic, please email Carol Long, our Catnippers Volunteer Coordinator, at carolL@catnippers.org.

Click here to view the embedded video.

TNR is a community-based, humane approach to controlling homeless cat overpopulation. It involves concerned citizens humanely trapping feral cats, getting them spayed and neutered (at clinics like FixNation), and then returning them to their natural environment so they can live out their lives. It is the humane alternative to trapping and killing cats at our city shelters, which is inhumane, consistently does not work, not to mention very costly to taxpayers like us.

While the city isn’t stopping private citizens from doing their own TNR, this ruling will suspend the city shelters from distributing our clinic flyers to educate people about TNR or allowing shelter employees to encourage TNR as an alternative to people as they are there dropping off cats at the shelter. It also ceases any city coupon funding that our clinic can use towards homeless cats, which is critical in helping us cover the cost of spay/neuter services to make them free for you.

Without TNR and spay/neuter, the homeless cat populations in this city will explode exponentially, which means many more cats will end up being killed at our city shelters. TNR has been the “unofficial” policy for years, until just last week when this judge forced the city to suspend it. Already our city shelter euthanasia rates are through the roof due to a bad economy and home foreclosures. This will seriously exacerbate the situation.

Want to take action? Here’s what you can do to help:

1) Please take a moment to sign the petition to show your support for TNR, and please share this with your friends and neighbors so they are aware.

Sign the Petition

2) We want to hear your great stories about how TNR has helped you and your neighborhood! If you have TNR’d homeless cats and have personally witnessed the positive difference this has made in your community, please take time to send us your story.

info@fixnation.org

3) Finally, if you do live in Los Angeles, contact your city council members and city representatives. Make sure they clearly know that you do not support this ruling, you do not support the killing of more homeless cats and that you DO support TNR. Even if you don’t live in California, please voice your opinion and support us. Post to Facebook, post to Twitter, please help us to get the word out.

Directory of City Council Members

If we all speak up, this ruling can be overturned and overcome. It’s not too late, and your voice counts!

With sincere thanks,

FixNation

————————–

From our Founder and President, Mark Dodge S. Dodge, Esq.

Wild bird groups sued the City of Los Angeles in 2008 to stop its support of Trap-Neuter-Return, the humane, community based method to control feral cat overpopulation. They claimed that under the California Environmental Quality Act, the City of LA could not provide discount spay neuter coupons to feral cat caregivers or promote TNR without an Environmental Study and Impact Report, based upon the utterly false premise that if TNR is promoted by the City, fewer cats will be killed in shelters, meaning more cats left in the environment to kill birds.

Last week, after a summary trial of this action, Judge Thomas McKnew, of the LA Superior Court, bought into this spurious argument and issued an injunction preventing any City support of TNR.

Whether or not this decision is appealed and the injunction stayed, it is time for humane-minded reasonable citizens of Los Angeles to speak out against this decision and do everything possible to show the Judge and the wild bird groups that we are opposed to anything but wholehearted, enthusiastic government support of TNR in Los Angeles.

The simple fact is that TNR does not produce more cats by “returning” them after surgery, as the wild bird advocates claim, it merely transforms cats already in the environment from being the prolific breeders they are, into sterile community cats, thereby reducing their numbers over time. The consequence is clearly not adverse to the “environment.”

Without TNR, we would see more and more cats killed in shelters, while at the same time the homeless population would simply continue to expand. Moreover, the impact of cats on bird populations is miniscule as compared to habitat loss, high rise windows, airplanes, weather and other predators, contrary to the claims made by many wild bird advocacy groups in their blind opposition to TNR.

This decision, if not overcome via legal or administrative means, will not mean an end to TNR in Los Angeles, but as long as it remains in effect, it will produce a loss of City support and discount spay-neuter coupons for feral cats, outcomes which are unacceptable.

TNR brings the community together in a positive way, promotes humanity to be humane, takes the pressure off of municipal budgets and allows society as a whole to work positively toward a long term solution to the problem of pet overpopulation. It deserves to be supported by City of Los Angeles. Until that support can resume, we ask the citizens of Los Angeles to show their support for TNR.

Visit FixNation at http://www.fixnation.org for more information on how you can make a difference for homeless cats in your own community.

]]> http://fixnation.org/2009/12/judges-ruling-impacts-tnr-in-los-angeles/feed/ 0 http://fixnation.org/2009/11/bringing-tame-cats/ http://fixnation.org/2009/11/bringing-tame-cats/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:14:45 +0000 admin http://fixnation.org/?p=1005 “Tame” refers to the temperament of the cat. Tame cats can be owned pet cats or they can be homeless, friendly stray cats who have been abandoned or “strayed” from home but were likely once pet cats. Tame cats can be generally picked up, held and easily handled.

No application is needed to bring a tame cat to our clinic, but advance reservations are required.

You may call our front desk at 818.524.2287 x 4 to speak to our receptionist and get booked for a spay/neuter reservation. The best time to call is between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. daily. If you call and it goes to voicemail, please leave your full name, street address, city, zip code, phone number and your email address. Please spell out anything that might not be clear over the phone. We’ll get you set up in our database and will call you back with the next available appointment date and instructions.

When you are calling to book a tame cat appointment, please be sure to specify that you need a “tame cat appointment”. We book feral cats differently, and we only have so many tame cat appointments slotted per day.

Please note that if your tame cat is over five years of age, we will not be able to fix your cat here. Instead we recommend you take your cat to a full-service vet hospital.

For owned pet cats, or rescued cats or kittens who are not being eartipped, our prices are $55 for a female/spay or $40 for a male/neuter. Shots and flea treatments are extra. For a listing of additional services (offered only at the time of surgery) and associated pricing, please see our price sheet in our “Forms & Resources” section in the bottom right section of our web site.

We do accept LA City spay/neuter vouchers again, as of January 2011. If you live within the city limits of LA, you are eligible for up to three (3) City spay/neuter vouchers per year, each good for $30 off the cost of a spay or neuter.  For LA City residents, you can pick up a City voucher at any of the six LA City animal shelters. Click here for the LAAS website for more information.

Homeless, tame stray cats and kittens can be fixed under our free feral program provided they are homeless and provided they are eartipped. Eartipping is the way to identify that an outdoor, free-roaming cat has been sterilized. Under our free feral program, friendly stray cats and kittens receive the spay/neuter surgery, a distemper vaccine, rabies vaccine, flea treatment, de-worming and the eartip — all for free.

Eartip

Reminders before your appointment day:

Adult cats should not have any food after 12 midnight the night before surgery. Water is okay.

Kittens under four months should have a small amount of wet food (about a teaspoon) around 6:00 a.m. the morning of surgery. This is to keep their blood sugar levels from dropping too low. Please make sure kittens are fed a small amount of food before bringing them in the day of surgery. Water is also okay.

Please make sure you transport each tame cat in an individual secure, hard plastic carrier –  no cardboard boxes, cardboard carriers or canvas pet bags allowed. Only one cat per carrier. You may want to cover the carrier with a towel or sheet to keep the cat calm, particularly during transport.

We accept cash, checks and credit cards for payment at the time of pick up. We accept Visa, Mastercard and Discover (sorry no Amex).

On your appointment date:

Check in is from 7:00 a.m – 8:00 a.m. When you arrive at the clinic, please leave the cats in your car and come into the clinic to fill out the check-in admission form. Once you’ve completed the check-in paperwork, you can then bring your cats into the clinic. Since we’re a high-volume clinic, our lobby gets very busy in the morning, and this just helps us to keep things running smoothly for everyone.

While your cat is here at the clinic, please make sure you are at a phone number that is reachable, or check your messages often. If there is any emergency, we will need to get a hold of you. Also, we will call you as soon as your cat is ready to go home.

Cats do go home the same day; we do not hold cats overnight. We will call you when your cat is ready to go. Normally cats are cleared for release between 1pm – 4pm; however, exact times vary depending on how many surgeries we have that day. Pick up needs to be before 5pm daily except for Thursdays. Thursdays we are open until 6pm for late pick up. If you are late and show up after our closing time, please be advised there is a $25 late fee per cat.

If you need to cancel or change your appointment for any reason, please call us as soon as possible.

We look forward to seeing you and your kitties at FixNation!

Feral cats will need to come to our clinic in humane cat traps, which we can loan to you under our free trap loan program. The reason we require humane cat traps is so we can anesthetize the cat through the trap. Since feral cats are not handleable, this makes it safer for both the cat as well as our vet tech.

For feral cats, both an initial application and spay/neuter reservations are required.

Click here for our Feral Cat Application

After you’ve completed the application, please email it back to us at info@fixnation.org or fax it to 818.767.7791. You can also mail it in to 7680 Clybourn Ave., LA, CA, 91352.

Once we receive your application, someone from our team will call or email you back in approximately 72 hours. We will talk to you about your specific situation, answer any questions you may have, schedule time for you to come in and pick up humane traps and get trained (if need be), and get you scheduled for spay/neuter reservations.

All applications are accepted provided that you agree to follow our clinic protocols. Our protocols are covered in the following documents, which you will need to thoroughly read and agree to follow to be eligible to come to our clinic:

• Humane Trapping Instructions
• Clinic Check-In and Pick-Up
• Pre- and Post-Surgery Care
• Safe Housing and Transporting

If you are helping a friend or family member who does not have access to the Internet, an application packet can be mailed out to them. Please call 818.524.2287 x 2 and leave the person’s name, address, phone number and that you need a feral cat application sent out. A packet will be mailed out to them.

Go to Step 2: Traps, Training and Booking Reservations