WORDS Tara Crutchfield
PHOTOGRAPH Amy Sexson
SPCA Florida to Open New Surgery Center OH, SNAP!
Lakeland-based nonprofit SPCA Florida is abuzz with construction, renovations, and new programs to better care for the cats and dogs that come into their facility. According to SPCA Florida Executive Director Shelley Thayer, these improvements are made possible through community generosity and participation.
April 9, 2022, was the end of a chapter for SPCA Florida. It marked the 30th and final Walk for the Animals, a fundraising event that raised over $90,000 this year. Though this was the final Walk for the Animals, the organization isn’t closing the book, just flipping the page to new programs.
SPCA Florida is a nonprofit organization founded in 1979. This no-kill shelter “exists to eliminate animal suffering and to engage the entire community in the welfare and well-being of animals. We accomplish this by advancing model programs to promote the adoption of healthy animals, prevent dog and cat overpopulation, provide veterinary medical services for animals in the community, and keep animals in homes through relinquishment intervention strategies,” according to their mission statement.
Smokepoint Rock for Paws, another SPCA Florida fundraiser, is coming up this month on May 14. The event held at Nora Mayo Hall in Winter Haven will benefit one such new program, SPCA Florida’s Emergency Response Team, FL SARC. The event promises live music and a raffle with prizes from an electric guitar and amp package to a full-size complete drum kit and more. FL SARC (Florida State Animal Rescue Coalition) is a ten-yearold nonprofit brought onboard by SPCA Florida last year. The only FEMA-approved nonprofit volunteer training organization in the United States, FL SARC’s mission is dedicated to disaster mitigation, preparation, response, and recovery for emergencies involving companion animals. “Last year, we deployed three
Last year, SPCA Florida saved 4,282 lives and performed 4,523 spay/neuter surgeries. The nonprofit’s Annual Save Rate for dogs and cats combined has risen from 92% in 2019, 94% in 2020, to 96% in 2021.
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