The nonprofit has just been awarded five grants totaling more than $86,000 that will go toward pet overpopulation education and services in Lompoc. According to CARE4Paws cofounder, Isabelle Gullö, the monies will “pay for a part-time bilingual community outreach coordinator and for spay/neuter surgeries performed at partner veterinary clinics in Lompoc and Buellton, as well as in the nonprofit’s own Spay Mobile, a spay/neuter clinic on wheels.” Gullö and Carlos Abitia founded CARE4Paws in 2009 with the goal of reducing pet overbreeding and so offer to provide free spay/neuter surgeries to low-income animal owners.
Cat Tales
Do you have a tale to tell of how a rescue kitty came into your life? For its 25th anniversary, Animal Shelter Assistance Program (ASAP), which was founded to help cats who end upward of the county find a new home, is soliciting stories from folks with adoption success tales to share. Selected pieces will be posted on ASAP’s Facebook page and website; some will also be featured at the organization’s anniversary gala, Saturday, May 17, 5:30-9:30 p.m. For more information and to submit your story, go to asapcats.org/adoptions/2014-anniversary-stories.html.
Pet-Grief Counseling
The death of a beloved pet is no small matter, and owners often experience the same stages of grief as when a human family member passes away. Recognizing this, Hospice of Santa Barbara now provides free support groups for folks mourning their pet. For more information and support-group times, call 563-8820 or visit hospiceofsantabarbara.org.