We’re happy to share this article which appeared in the Houston Chronicle about a great new asset to the East End: a low-cost spay/neuter mobile clinic. As many of you know, the East End has large population of stray animals. This new offering is a welcome attempt to help. Learn more about Emancipet here, located in the parking lot of Ripley House at 4410 Navigation Blvd.
More from the Houston Chronicle‘s Mike Morris:
Though many Houstonians know a walking stick sometimes must double as a defensive weapon against stray dogs, few know this better than those in the East End.
The neighborhood got a boost in what community leaders say is a decades-long fight against animal overpopulation on Saturday with the opening of a mobile clinic that will offer free and low-cost spay/neuter procedures, the latest in a series of steps city leaders have taken in recent years to drop Houston’s staggering stray population.
Community activist Jessica Hulsey said it’s not hard to spot a pack of 10 dogs on the prowl, and said the problem stems from residents not knowing how to be responsible pet owners and from many lacking the funds to take responsible steps, such as getting their animals fixed.
“With the type of issues we have in this neighborhood, East End, Second Ward, this is a wonderful thing to have,” she said. “Bringing this to the neighborhood – it was needed. We do have a problem.”
‘Culture shift’
The 48-foot mobile clinic, parked at Ripley House, 4410 Navigation, is owned and run by Austin-based nonprofit Emancipet, which played a key role in making Austin a “no-kill” city, defined as when 90 percent of animals received at local shelters leave alive.
Emancipet CEO Amy Mills said her group wants to help Houston along the same path by expanding affordable spay/neuter access, a key way to reduce shelter intake and the rate at which animals are euthanized.
