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.
Since our spay/neuter community outreach efforts began in 2016, The Sato Project has spayed/neutered and vaccinated more than 7,500 owned dogs and cats. We have also vaccinated an additional 1,800 dogs through our drive-up free community vaccine clinics that started in 2021.
SPAY, NEUTER & VACCINE COMMUNITY VOUCHER PROGRAM
In March of 2016, we were very excited to launch our Spay, Neuter, Vaccine and Microchip Program to expand our work within the Yabucoa community. Since then, The Sato Project has been offering a low-cost community spay/neuter, vaccination, and microchipping voucher program, run through our partner clinic in Humacao. 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.
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. The Spayathon for Puerto Rico which launched in June of 2018 was the answer to that prayer. From 2018-2020, Spayathon allowed us to dramatically expand our spay/neuter efforts. Spayathon services were sadly canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic; however, our SNVM community voucher program continues to grow. During 2021, thanks to support from Tito’s Handmade Vodka and @Keepingfinn, this program was able to go from low-cost to completely free.
Pop-Up Community Vaccine Clinics
In early 2021, outbreaks of deadly distemper were reported across Puerto Rico. The Sato Project even experienced an outbreak in one of our own veterinary clinics. Distemper is a highly contagious disease and there is a routine vaccine given to all dogs who are lucky enough to receive regular veterinary care. So for most dog owners, it is never a serious concern they have to face. However, in Puerto Rico, where there are thousands of stray dogs trying to survive in the streets and many families who cannot afford routine veterinary care for their pets - distemper is a harsh reality. As soon as this disease surfaced among some of our intakes, we knew we needed to take action quickly. Since the outbreaks began, our team has been holding periodic drive-up, outdoor vaccine clinics for dog owners in our community. During the first year of this program, we vaccinated 1,800 dogs for distemper, parvovirus, leptospirosis, and rabies.
If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of any portion of our spay/neuter/vaccine and microchip efforts, please email donation@thesatoproject.org. Or, us the form below to donate toward these efforts directly.
If you are a pet owner in Puerto Rico who would like to learn more about accessing any of these services, email us at snv@thesatoproject.org. Or, follow us on social media, where we always announce the dates of all our upcoming clinics.