By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
More than 500 dogs and cats from the area were spayed or neutered during a second free clinic held here March 27 through March 31.
The free clinic was organized by Jessica Halprin, head of Del Rio’s newest animal rescue organization, Border Animal Mission, and Angela Cherry, president and chief executive officer of Helping Paws Across Borders, headquartered in Placitas, N.M.
The city of Del Rio assisted the effort by providing a venue where the surgeries could be done, the Chihuahua Neighborhood Facility at 1401 Las Vacas St., and the Val Verde County Commissioners Court allocated up to $6,000 to be used to buy meals for the three volunteer veterinarians and dozens of volunteer assistants from Del Rio and across the nation who gave their time to work at the clinic in various capacities.
The 830 Times visited the clinic on Tuesday and spoke with several organizers and volunteers about the spay and neuter efforts.
Cherry has been working on behalf of animals for more than 22 years.
Cherry said, “I was actually in a vet’s office for many, many years, and just seeing the people that were not able to afford this kind of care for their pets, and these were people who really loved their pets. That was something that always tugged at my heart, so by starting Helping Paws Across Borders, that allowed us to help people get their pets taken care of.”
She added the clinics are about more than simply providing the spay and neuter surgeries free of charge.
Cherry said, “If an animal were to come to us with, say, an eye problem, as long as it’s safe in the environment we’re in, we will take care of that, too.”
Cherry said her organization decided to return to Del Rio for a second clinic — the first was held here in mid-January and spayed and neutered more than 430 local pets free to their owners — because of her relationship with Halprin and her Border Animal Mission.
Cherry said, “They’re an incredible team to work with, and we absolutely love them, and the people of Del Rio; I can’t tell you how many thank yous we’ve gotten, and thank yous are what keep us going, and knowing that they do appreciate our help, and they want their animals to have a better quality of life.”
Cherry said she will absolutely bring her team back to Del Rio for future clinics. She said “it takes about a year” before a local community can begin to see the difference made by the clinics.
Halprin had nothing but praise for her New Mexico partners.
Halprin said, “We’re so lucky that Helping Paws Across Borders is willing to come back and hang out with us, help us. We get along great as a team. It’s so nice to work with them. We’re so happy to have almost 1,000 Del Rio animals fixed after these two events.
“And that’s actually the second part of our mission. The first part is transport, to transport as many animals as possible to adoption centers in the northeast, so the second part of our mission is to spay and neuter as many animals as possible here in the local area, in Del Rio, to fix the overpopulation crisis, so this has been our miracle,” Halprin said.
Halprin said she will be working with Cherry to bring another clinic back to Del Rio.
Asked how local pet and animal lovers can help her in her efforts, Halprin said, “Definitely getting your friends, anybody that you know that has a pet that’s not fixed, send them in the direction of our Facebook pages, because that’s where we post the sign-up immediately for any new clinics, so having them follow our pages, because some of the grants we receive are based on how many followers we have, and when we drop the emails for the next clinic, you want people to be following the page so they can see it when it happens almost right away.”
Asked if there was anything she or Cherry wished to add, Cherry said, “Please spay and neuter your pets, if possible, and have them vaccinated.”
Halprin also provided a tour of the surgical setup inside the Chihuahua Neighborhood Facility, noting that pet parents dropped their pets off at the registration/intake area.
Halprin said, “The pets are checked in. The pets have their hearts checked, make sure they can go through the surgery. They also get some ‘sleepy meds,’ so they can start winding down. Then they go into the cleaning area, where volunteers shave the pet’s belly area, where the incision will be made, and then they go to one of the three surgery teams, and after they’re done, the pet is taken directly to the recovery area.”
Cats recovering from surgery were kept in individual cages as they awakened, and dogs recovering from surgeries were placed on cots with blankets, where volunteers worked individually with each animal to make sure the recovery process was smooth and stress-free.
“The volunteers regularly check their pulse and their temperature and their breathing to make sure they’re waking up fine. In the recovery area, they also get their nails trimmed and their ears cleaned, if that’s needed, some extra care we can give the animal while it’s still under. The pets also get their vaccines in this area,” Halprin said.
Once the pet was fully awake and alert, his or her owner was notified and asked to come collect their pet.
Halprin also showed a separate room for sterilizing all the instruments used in the surgeries. She said a new pack of sterilized instruments is used for each surgery.
New Hampshire resident Angie Brintle was one of the nearly 40 volunteers from around the country and from Del Rio who donated their time to work at the clinic.
Brintle said she began volunteering with Helping Paws Across Borders in 2022. She said she knew Cherry from working with other animal rescue organizations.
Brintle spoke about why she believed the volunteer work she and the others are doing is important.
Brintle said, “We all know there is a huge overpopulation problem in the animal world in the United States. The animal shelters are full, and there’s nowhere for these animals to go, and the people who want to help their animals don’t always have the means to do so, because spay and neuters are expensive surgeries, and sometimes it’s hard to even gain access, even if people could afford them. I think this is, rather than a reactive solution, a proactive solution.”
Brintle said the most rewarding aspect of her volunteer work is “seeing people who really, really love their animals trust us enough to spay and neuter their animals and to be so happy and grateful when they come to pick them up.”
“It’s really knowing that we’re making a difference in the community, for the people and their animals, to help solve that animal overpopulation problem,” Brintle added.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
