Many Americans would be shocked to know that just a few short hours south of Los Angeles, land of movie stars and sunshine, dogs live on the streets, scavenging due to starvation, dying of preventable diseases, and reproducing at a rapid rate due to a lack of spay/neuter resources.  The local Mexican pounds, or Perreras, fill up endlessly as a result.

“The percentage of animals [in the Perreras] that are either adopted or claimed by their owners is negligible,” Marlene Revelen, President of Animal Advocates of the United States (AAUS) says.  This means that most pets who enter the Perrera don’t make it out alive. Between January and June of 2012, 22,399 dogs were euthanized in seven Baja Perreras (Tijuana, Mexicali, Ensenada, San Quintin, Nogales, Saltillo, and San Luis Colorado).

While over 22,000 dogs euthanized in a seven-month period points to a staggering problem — there is hope. One of the most effective means of ending suffering in the Perreras is preventing pets from ending up there in the first place.

Every month, United Hope for Animals teams up with AAUS, 4 Paws, and other individual sponsors to support a spay and neuter clinic in Baja, California. The clinic travels to areas where people do not have the financial means to alter their pets, and in doing so provides this needed service as well as pet-care education.

The clinic team is made up of about 30 volunteers and three veterinarians, who devote a Saturday or Sunday from 9 am to about 6 pm, performing as many spay/neuters as possible.

Laura Sandoval of AAUS reports that there hasn’t been much need of advertising the clinic, as people share information with their friends and family. Dog and cat owners who could not otherwise afford to pay for the surgery line up each month, and often only have rope, wire, or shoe laces to leash their dogs, Sandoval said.

In March, the clinic team surpassed its goal of 80 procedures when a record number of 111 pets were altered: 77 dogs and 34 cats!

United Hope for Animals was able to sponsor 40 of these surgeries, thanks to generous donations to our Spay and Neuter Program.

We hope to continue our regular support and even expand it, increasing the number of animals we can help each month. For just a $20 donation, which goes toward anesthesia, sutures, and other medical supplies, you can sponsor the spay or neuter of one pet and prevent the suffering of thousands more.

With your help, there is hope. Please consider donating here!