CAIT, the Companion Animal Initiative of Tennessee is proud to announce the statewide TOLL-FREE number to find Spay/Neuter resources throughout Tennessee is up and running.
CAIT's mission is to reduce the state surplus of homeless cats and dogs by taking a proactive approach and promoting humane education throughout the state, thus improving the lives of all companion animals in Tennessee.
Every day in Tennessee, hundreds of cats or dogs are euthanized because there are not enough loving homes to accommodate the seemingly endless supply of kittens and puppies in the state. CAIT can help change that. Even though we are the newest program at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, we have already begun to engage our veterinary students in community spay neuter activities. Not only does this expose our students to the problem of pet overpopulation, but it also arms them with a solution they can administer when they move into other communities as veterinarians. Currently, CAIT is developing a Shelter Medicine curriculum to expose our students to the realities of shelter medicine and the problems faced by sick, abandoned, homeless and mistreated animals.
But we are expanding beyond the walls of the veterinary college. We know we can accomplish more as a team than as individuals. Through partnerships with the Animal Control Association of Tennessee, the Tennessee Humane Association, the Tennessee Veterinary Medical Association and various grass roots organizations in Tennessee, CAIT is pooling resources to educate citizens so they understand the needs of companion animals and the importance of spaying or neutering. Ultimately, it will take all of us working together to reduce the surplus of unwanted animals in Tennessee.
Well folks we finally have a "TN Spay NeUTer" helpline that residents of TN can call TOLL FREE to find out about services in their area/county! Special thanks to PetSafe for sponsoring this line!!!
How does it work?• Folks can call the TOLL FREE number, someone will be answering the phone 1:00pm-5:00pm (EST) Mon-Fri. If they are calling during non business hours, they can leave a message which will be returned immediately.
• We will ask the caller what county they are located in, and search our database for their options. We want to direct them to you and your agencies for these services. So PLEASE visit our database to make sure your information is current and updated
http://www.vet.utk.edu/cait/counties.html. If the info is wrong or needs changes, just email me (T Jennings) and let me know and I will copy and paste the info for you.
• We are going to begin advertising the number thru emails, signs, mailings and newspaper ads. So email me the name of your local newspapers and we will begin contacting them about possible ads.
• We have print ads ready to go that I can also send you if you want to print some to hand out.
• Please feel free to forward this email to every person you know in TN that could benefit from this service or that is or is not listed in our database that should be.
What You Can DoThe 2nd Phase is that CAIT would like to work with your agencies to sponsor spay days in your area. We are currently working on finding funding to pay for these spay days.
Option A: We could bring veterinary students to your areas to learn and gain experience doing spays/neuters.
Option B: We could provide vouchers for citizens to use at your agencies or vet clinics.
Option C: We could use our network of alumni vets in TN to help host more spay days in their clinics and use students in the process.
Again, we are looking for funds to cover the 2nd phase and this phase is in the planning stages, but because this is a state wide effort, there are some promising prospects.
Contact InformationIf you have any questions PLEASE don’t hesitate to email Teresa Jennings at helpingcritters@yahoo.com OR cait@utk.edu.
Good things Tennessee!! Good things!!
T’
Teresa L. Jennings, CAIT Program Director
Companion Animal Initiative of Tennessee
University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine
2407 River Drive, A205 Veterinary Teaching Hospital
Knoxville , TN 37996-4543
Tel: (865) 755-2276 Fax: (865) 974-5640
cait@utk.edu
www.vet.utk.edu/cait
"Be the change you want to see in the world." ~Gandhi
[i]Posted by Kim Cady - Information Courtesy of T' Jennings (CAIT)[/i