San Diego, February 21, 2022 – SNAP announced today that it will participate in World Spay Day by hosting an affordable spay/neuter clinic on February 22, 2022, at a new location: the Kit Carson Park Amphitheatre in Escondido, beginning at 7:00 am.
World Spay Day falls on the last Tuesday of February during Spay/Neuter Awareness Month. It was originally referred to as Spay Day USA, created by Doris Day and the Doris Day Animal League in 1995. The purpose of the worldwide event is to encourage pet owners to spay/neuter their pets to improve pet health, as well as reduce the stray population that often end up in the shelter system or struggle to survive on their own under harsh and inhumane conditions.
SNAP, a local nonprofit, has been the leading provider of low-cost spay/neuter services in San Diego County for the last 20 years. Without SNAP, many pets in financially disadvantaged communities would likely not receive any level of medical care in their lifetime and shelters would be overflowing with unwanted offspring. SNAP started as a volunteer group in the 1990s to address the root cause of pet overpopulation, then became a charitable organization to educate the public on the importance of spaying and neutering pets. They are credited for creating the first Spay/Neuter Provider Referral List in San Diego. In the early 2000s, the original Neuter Scooter hosted its first affordable spay/neuter clinic in Azalea Park and a second Neuter Scooter was donated by United Hope. In 2019, production began on the new Neuter Scooter, with the first clinic in the new surgical unit held in 2020 at Miramar in honor of our service members. Currently, SNAP North brings high-volume clinics to unincorporated San Diego and Sovereign Nations, and SNAP East targets pets in East County, our first stationary clinic site. Since 2003, SNAP has spayed/neutered over 70,000 pets, therefore preventing the birth of millions of orphaned animals through generations of unwanted litters.
“SNAP has a long, meaningful, and rich history in San Diego County. We are the provider for lower-income pet owners and others who have no affordable veterinary care options in their own communities. With our services in north and central county up to five days a week in conjunction with three days a week in east county, we are averaging almost 600 surgeries each month,” said Dorell Sackett, SNAP Executive Director of Operations. She added, “the San Diego Department of Animal Services recognized SNAP in 2018 as a key contributor to a reduction in euthanasia rates in our local shelters.” SNAP is funded by nationally recognized animal welfare organizations, local foundations, civic groups, the City of San Diego, the County of San Diego, and an individual donor base.
Please consider a donation to SNAP today to help more animals to receive a lifesaving spay or neuter or call 866-772-9287 to see if your pet qualifies for our high-quality services at discounted rates.