James Riley and his fiancée, Catherine Kilborn, adopt a kitten As the dog days of summer come rolling in with their heat and humidity, the animal shelters in the Midlands are feeling the pinch of a heavy kitten and puppy season. Cats and dogs, strays as well as those with homes, are reproducing at an accelerated rate and Pets Inc. is trying to help with Neuter Scooter, a low cost spay and neuter clinic.

The clinic is run out of the shelter, located on Orchard Drive in West Columbia, and since it’s opening on June 3 has had great response from the community, said Lee Ann Holly, one of the coordinators.

“We’ve found that everyone wants to do the right thing by their pets but some people simply can’t afford it,” Holly said. “We are trying to make it easier for those people and for the average person who sees a stray cat or dog and knows it needs to be spayed or neutered.”

Aaron Fisher with his new friend, Sadie Because of the economy, Holly said that more and more people put off fixing their animals, and the astronomical cost at some veterinarians is a huge roadblock.

“Some vets charge as much as $300 or more to fix an animal and a lot of people cannot afford that,” Holly said. “We want to cater to the people who want to do it but don’t have a lot of money. For some people it boils down to groceries or fixing their animal and, of course, they would have to feed their family.”

The veterinary services aren’t limited to those in need though, Holly said. Anyone can use the clinic for shots or for fixing their pets.

“They can just come in and fill out a form and make an appointment with a vet technician,” she said. “We offer low costs services and payment plans. Sort of a ‘spay now, pay later’ idea,” she laughed.

Cats are a little cheaper than dogs with spaying costing $60 and neutering $50 while spaying a dog is $75 and canine neuters run $65. Shots and vaccinations are also available in the shelter’s Cheap Shots program with costs running from $8–$12 for both cats and dogs, Holly said. And people can also get a payment plan with up to three payments if needed.

“When you consider that an average cat that goes outside needs three shots, and many vets charge upwards of $80 and we do it for about $25, that’s quite a savings, especially if you have multiple animals. We also microchip them for $25, which can get pretty expensive at other places.”

Tests for several diseases are available for under $22 and deworming and nail trimming run at $5.

The clinic is staffed by a licensed vet and several licensed veterinarian technicians, Holly said.

“One thing we strongly believe in is educating the pet owner,” she said. “We are a shelter first, and when we adopt an animal out, we make sure the new owners are aware of their responsibilities to get the new pet regular vet visits, have them checked for heartworms or leukemia, and to sterilize them.”

Holly said that due to the dire economy and that it’s currently kitten and puppy season, the shelter is full of hopeful animals looking for homes.

“We have 67 kittens here at present along with about 50 adult cats and 50 dogs including puppies. A lot of them are the larger breeds, which is tougher to adopt if people don’t have a yard.”

She said adoptions are down, and unfortunately the return rate is up.

“We have a lot of active military who are being deployed and then there are so many home foreclosures where people have to move into an apartment that won’t take their animals. And sadly, there are a lot of elderly people moving into assisted living and nursing homes and they can’t bring their animals they have had for years. And the animals are old and don’t understand what is happening to them. We get them all and try to accommodate everyone.”

Adoptions are always happening at the shelter and on the day of this story, James Riley and his fiancée Catherine Kilburn were adopting a kitten. Holding the tiny ball of fluff, Riley laughed and said that the kitten was his engagement present.

“I’m a cat person and Catherine has a dog,” he said. “So when I proposed I said I wanted a cat, and she said I could have one. His name is going to be Rhett Butler.”

In another area, Pets Inc. retail manager Monica McCartha was adopting out an adult dog to another couple, Ashley Howard and Jamie DePew. They said they were getting the new dog, Thunder, for their current dog, Congo.

“Congo had a buddy named Scrappy,” DePew said. “But he disappeared, and we haven’t been able to find him. Congo really missed him so we brought him here to find another pal.”

McCartha said all prospective pet adopters were interviewed and when the animals left Pets Inc. they were healthy, fixed, and had their shots.

“We want happy pets and happy owners,” she said. “If it doesn’t work out for some reason, we ask the people return the animal to us.”

In the vaccination area, Aaron Fisher was holding Sadie, a teacup Chihuahua. She weighed in at maybe a pound, after a big meal.

“I’m here to get her second round of puppy shots,” Fisher said. “I trust this place, and I know they care about the animals. I want to make sure she gets the best.”

Another woman was there to get her cats immunized. She said the Pets Inc. clinic beat out the others by far.

“Most vets cost a fortune and if you go to one of those parking lot vaccine trailers, you have to stand in line in the hot sun, and your animal is on a leash or in a carrier. My cats get very stressed out with all the barking dogs but here, you sit on a couch in air conditioning and you can be sure of the vet’s credentials as well as be comfortable while you wait.”

The Neuter Scooter and the Cheap Shots clinics are open Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Animals are seen by appointment only. For more information, call (803) 739-9333.

Pets Inc. is a no–kill facility that finds homes for animals. It survives entirely by donations and the sales of its pet supplies and services.