Spay, neuter clinic starts; boonie dogs fly out

From left, Calvin Borja, Saipan Mayor’s Office Dog Shelter staff; Yumi Brundidge, vet tech; Elizabeth Snodgrass, RN, Emily Hurtt, Simion Nepayo, SMO Dog Shelter staff; Derek Deleon Guerrero, SMO Dog Shelter staff; and Alison Hadley, executive director of GAIN, pose for a photo during the first day of the spay/neuter clinic yesterday at the Saipan Mayor’s Office Dog Shelter in As Perdido. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

The spay and neuter clinic that set up shop at the Saipan Mayor’s Office Dog Shelter in As Perdido started yesterday. The day before that, on Monday, boonie dogs left Saipan and are in transit to their new homes off island.

The collaborative efforts of Boonie Babies Saipan, Guam Animals In Need, or GAIN, and the Office of the Mayor of Saipan made it possible for the clinic to be up once again—which has now been extended until this Friday, Jan. 27, for half day of services.

Although they are not taking in anymore pets for services as all slots have been filled, Lauren Cabrera, co-founder of the Boonie Flight Project in Guam and a volunteer clinic coordinator, encourages people to sign up for the waitlist at www.tinyurl.com/booniebabies for the next time a clinic is set up.

In a tour of the clinic at the Dog Shelter yesterday, Cabrera said their team of about 15 volunteer veterinarians and assistants, along with about four SMO Dog Control Program staff, managed to sterilize 12 dogs and seven cats and are aiming to sterilize at least 20 a day until Friday.

Along with the sterilizing services, they also offer vaccines, rabies vaccines, and microchipping for a fee.

Rep. Edwin K. Propst (D-Saipan) was seen picking up his dog, Isa, at the clinic, and said he is grateful for the efforts of Cabrera, GAIN, and the Mayor’s Office.

“We’re most grateful to GAIN and the team out here to assist and make this possible. We need something like this to be permanent and long term to really help drive down the pet population here in the CNMI.”

With his female dog now spayed, he doesn’t have to worry about having more puppies. Propst added that he met and discussed with Cabrera the services they’re providing and that it is evident that there’s a need for these services on the islands, and that “it’s just a matter of finding grants and funding for it.”

Arthur Tagum was also seen picking up his five cats—one of whom was too young to be sterilized. He said he has 38 cats and will definitely get them sterilized with the next available clinic.

Cabrera said, “Our team is very grateful to the support of Mayor RB Camacho. He’s allowed us use of his shelter to host the clinic, and his skilled staff is essential to the success of these programs. We are so appreciative of the support.”

In a separate effort but with the same mission of reducing the stray animal population, boonie dogs were shipped to adoptive families either to the U.S. or Canada with the help of the Boonie Flight Project and Boonie Babies Saipan.

From the original 30 dogs, 39 actually left Saipan and made their way to Guam on Monday. They then left Guam for Hawaii and are en route to their respective states.

Lisa Meador Schoppa-Animal Travel Agent LLC charters airplanes specifically for pet travel, and is a sponsor of the Boonie Flight Project, which makes the flights possible for dogs to reach their adoptive families safely in the United States.

Cabrera said this is the first time this amount of boonie dogs were shipped out and that there will be more sometime in the future.