Help TEARS sterilise 350 animals for World Spay Day, 24 & 25 February - One sterilisation prevents thousands of rescues

By TEARS Animal Rescue

TEARS Animal Rescue, in collaboration with Animal Welfare South Africa (AWS), AfriPaw and experienced veterinarians from TAH, is launching a World Spay Day campaign titled ‘Stop the Cycle. Save Lives.’

This year, we are doing things differently. Over just two days, 24 and 25 February, the teams aim to sterilise 350+ cats and dogs, with each partner playing a vital role in making this possible. TEARS and AWS will provide clinical facilities where the procedures will take place, AfriPaw will assist by co-ordinating the identification of animals from underserved communities, and the TAH veterinary team will provide additional surgical support to help

reach, and hopefully exceed, our goal.

The purpose is simple but urgent: to prevent unwanted litters and reduce long-term suffering. One unsterilised animal can lead to hundreds, even thousands, of unwanted animals over time, many destined to live lives of neglect, hunger and hardship. By sterilising just one animal, we don’t only change one life, we prevent generations of suffering before it begins.

Sterilisation reduces suffering, neglect and overcrowding

TEARS Operations Manager, Mandy Store, says, “Sterilising animals is the most successful way to reduce animal suffering. At TEARS, we see so many litters born into neglect, mothers exhausted from constant breeding and animals suffering not because people don’t care but because prevention did not happen in time. Sterilisation is one of the most powerful tools we have to stop this cycle before it starts. One sterilisation doesn’t just help one animal, it prevents generations of suffering, and it keeps animals out of over-populated shelters.”

Sterilisation is a prevention, not just a rescue

TEARS Animal Rescue works in underserved communities where access to veterinary services is limited, and many pets and stray animals go unneutered. Store says, “Sterilisation saves lives before a rescue is even needed. Every female dog or cat we spay, or male pet we neuter, costs R500 for this campaign, money we need to raise from the public. By donating to this relevant and meaningful campaign, donors are helping before animals end up in shelters or before those animals’ next litters are forced into shelters. Animal welfare shelters are severely overcrowded. Although TEARS is a pro-life shelter, once our shelter is full, we cannot accept any more animals, even though so many more animals need our help.”

The R500 cost includes sterilisation, vaccination, a microchip and a bag of food

“All animals we sterilise are entered into a database, allowing us to track not only each individual animal but also the number of animals in each household and area, giving us a clear picture of how many animals have been sterilised in a specific location. The R500 cost per procedure includes a vaccination, a microchip and a bag of food for each animal. We are hoping to raise enough funds to carry out 350 sterilisations,” says Store.

As one unsterilised animal can lead to thousands of unwanted animals, so one sterilisation changes everything, not only for that one animal but for thousands more. “We would like to thank every donor for standing with us, and for caring about the animals who can’t speak for themselves,” says Store.

Help TEARS Animal Rescue prevent suffering for thousands of animals in the future by donating to this campaign. Donations can be made via the following link: https://app.glueup.com/event/166854/register/