The Sato Project is working hard to make permanent change for animal welfare in Puerto Rico. We recognize that rescuing dogs is only one piece of the solution to the crisis of an estimated 500,000 stray dogs on the island. In order to work towards a future where every dog is owned and humanely cared for, we need to tackle the problem of overpopulation. As of 2021, we have spayed/neuter and vaccinated over 7,500 dogs and cats through our community outreach programs.
SPAY, NEUTER, VACCINE & MICROCHIP VOUCHER PROGRAM
In March 2016 we launched an aggressive community Spay/Neuter/Vaccine and microchip campaign in the Yabucoa municipality in Puerto Rico. The goal of this effort is to educate the local population about responsible pet ownership and to provide low cost affordable veterinary resources through our two partner veterinary clinics. We are targeting low income and disenfranchised neighborhoods throughout Yabucoa and have been providing 30 vouchers per month. Preventing unwanted pregnancy is a critical component of this effort, but we are also working to prevent the spread of disease to both humans and animals, which is why each dog participating in the voucher program is given a rabies and DA2LPPV vaccine. Residents of Yabucoa can have their dogs or cats spayed or neutered, vaccinated and microchipped for $35 under this program. Click here to learn more about our voucher program.
SPAYATHON FOR PUERTO RICO
Prior to Hurricane Maria in September of 2017, we were starting to see a reduction in the number of unwanted litters of puppies being abandoned. Unfortunately, in the wake of the storm's devastation, the untold numbers of animals which were displaced or abandoned in the storm's aftermath, and the fact that no veterinary clinics were operational for several months at least, means that in the spring of 2018 we started to witness an overwhelming number of litters being abandoned - in boxes, in bags, left at the beach or by the side of the road, to die. While we have been rescuing as many as we can, we knew this moment called for a program on a much grander scale than our monthly voucher program. Spayathon for Puerto Rico which launched in June of 2018 was the answer to that prayer. Spayathon for Puerto Rico was a high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter (HQHVSNV) initiative spearheaded by The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and was a collaboration of 28 organizations. The Sato Project was incredibly proud to be a part of this historic first-of-its-kind coalition that helped created permanent change for the animals and people of Puerto Rico and set a precedent for how to address a widespread stray animal crisis.
After six successful rounds of clinics and over 50,000 animals reached, the Spayathon was sadly canceled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, The Sato Project team is hard at work applying everything we learned through Spayathon at developing future programs. Click here to learn more about this historic collaborative effort.