Calgary Humane Society launches community spay and neuter clinics to control pet population

A puppy is seen at the Calgary Humane Society in this undated image. (CTV News)

The Calgary Humane Society (CHS) kicked off its inaugural community spay and neuter clinic Thursday in the wake of a significant increase in the number of owner-surrendered animals requiring shelter across the city.

CEO Carrie Fritz says the non-profit has seen a 200 per cent increase alone in the number of puppies that have come through its doors compared to two years ago.

“Five years ago you would never see a puppy in our shelter, very rarely and as soon as their little paws hit the adoption floor, they would be gone, but that’s not the case anymore,” she said.

“These puppies, they’re coming in, they’re sitting and waiting a long time to find a home, so we really want to get to the root cause of that.”

CHS recently received approval to launch its own spay and neuter clinic and was overwhelmed with 30 applications in just the first 24 hours last week.

Available to low-income families, the program costs $40 for low-income pet owners who have a cat or dog between the ages of six months and six years old.

The clinics were created in an attempt to get the animal population under control after consecutive years of puppy increases in southern Alberta pet shelters.

To date, more than 90 dog and cat owners have now applied for the program which has received $73,000 in donations.

“The generosity of Calgarians means we can host these programs well into the fall and we’re hoping to help owners in every quadrant of the city so we can really address the need,” Fritz added.

All of the free community spay and neuter clinics will be hosted at CHS located at 4455 110 Avenue S.E., but official dates for the upcoming clinics are still to be determined.

For more information on how to apply for the free community spay and neuter clinics, pet owners can visit the CHS website.