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SNYP offers cut-rate spay certificates Mail Tribune / Jim Craven A kitten at the Jackson County Animal Care and Control Center bats at the camera in hopes of being adopted Thursday. This is the time of year when shelters are overrun with unwanted pets. Local animal advocacy groups are hoping to curb the overpopulation with discounts on spay and neutering. By MARK FREEMAN PHOENIX - Local animal shelters are deep within their summer explosion of unwanted pets, and advocacy groups are offering cut rates on spaying and neutering to help curb this annual overpopulation of cats and dogs. This month alone, hundreds of unwanted Rogue Valley cats will be taken to the Jackson County Animal Care and Control Center, where three out of every four likely will be euthanized. The incoming pets range from females with new litters to a host of other cats and dogs now in the thick of their summer heat. "People get tired of the yowls and howls, so they catch the adults and bring them in," says Colleen Macuk, who manages the shelter. "We have to take them all. We can't turn them away. "This simply is not an acceptable means of overpopulation control," Macuk says. That's why a group called SNYP (Spay-Neuter Your Pets) wants to cut pet overpopulation literally at its source. It is selling certificates for low-cost spaying and neutering to pet owners throughout this month. Certificates to spay or neuter cats cost $30, while those for fixing dogs cost $50. Female dogs weighing more than 60 pounds require an additional $15. Participating veterinarians are listed on the back of the certificates. The certificates save as much as half the cost of spaying a cat, and as much as $40 for spaying a dog. Pet overpopulation runs in predictable cycles in Jackson County, where the animal control center is often the last stop for these animals. In January through April, the center takes in about 150 cats each month, but the unwanted feline numbers climb above 400 in summer. For July, the center took in 402 cats, adopted out 95 cats and euthanized 319, Macuk says. Spaying and neutering pets would dramatically reduce those numbers, she says. "It addresses all of the issues and problems that bring these animals to our door," Macuk says. SNYP, which is an all-volunteer program in Jackson County, also offers special programs for helping spay and neuter pets of seniors and low-income residents. The SNYP certificates are available in Medford at the Pet Country store and at all the Mini Pet Marts, as well as at the various shelters in the county. For more information on SNYP, telephone 858-3325, or visit the group's Web site at www.spayneuter.com. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.