The nonprofit Sacramento Area Animal Coalition (SAAC) is offering a deal too good for pet owners to pass up. For just $15, male cats can be neutered and receive core vaccinations, a dose of flea preventive, and permanent microchip identification -- services that typically cost as much as $250. SAAC has more than 150 appointments available for male cats as part of Spay Day Sacramento, which takes place at 18 area veterinary clinics and animal shelters on Sunday, February 26, 2012. Residents of Sacramento and Yolo Counties who receive public assistance and/or have an annual household income of $35,000 or less can have up to two cats neutered at participating veterinary clinics and animal

It’s early Sunday morning in January. Cars pull into the lot in an industrial section of South Sacramento. What would possess people to get up this early on a cold, dark winter’s day? It’s not a swap meet, big sale, concert tickets, or church. These people have come to the Sacramento SPCA feral cat clinic to get the cats they’ve trapped spayed or neutered and vaccinated as part of a program called TNR: trap neuter return. Why do they do this? It’s a problem that has to be dealt with. “When feral overpopulation causes a problem, people get annoyed with all cats – ferals and pets. They don’t discriminate,” trapper Mary said, summarizing a common sentiment. “Cats get run over, poisoned, ab

There’s a war being waged in Sacramento. The dead are strewn in street gutters like dirty rags, or wind up in dumpsters and garbage cans. Even though the casualties are all on the other side, the humans are losing. The battle is to control our stray and feral cat population, currently estimated to be 350,000 cats in the Sacramento region. The cats are losing, too. There are no winners in this war. Recent news stories about a pet cat shot with a crossbow, teens killing cats for "fun" and a cat mauled by neighborhood dogs underscore the tragic results of a lack of respect for free-roaming cats. An out-of-control feral cat population contributes to the perception of cats as a nuisance and a

As warmer weather approaches, the Sacramento County Animal Shelter is gearing up for the arrival of “kitten season” by reminding County residents to make sure their cats and kittens are spayed or neutered and have current licenses. “Kitten season is when the majority of kittens are surrendered or abandoned at the shelter during the spring and summer months as cats begin a new breeding cycle as the weather gets warmer,” said Dave Dickinson, Interim Animal Shelter Director. “Cats can have multiple litters a year, so it is very important that cat owners make sure that their cats have been altered to prevent unwanted litters with hundreds of kittens that end up at area shelters.” The County

Despite a stagnant economy, Sacramento area veterinary clinics and animal shelters are poised to give away as much as $160,000 in services to pet owners in need as part of “Spay Day Sacramento” on February 28. Operated annually by the nonprofit Sacramento Area Animal Coalition (SAAC), Spay Day Sacramento is the largest one-day spay/neuter event in the country. This year, approximately 800 dogs and cats will receive spay/neuter surgery for just $20 per dog and $15 per cat. According to SAAC board member Kim Kinnee, spaying and neutering is one of the most effective ways to reduce the number of homeless and unwanted pets in the Sacramento area. About half of the 40,000 animals entering Sac