American Rescue League Boston joins MAF for special spay/neuter clinic in Fall River; highlights need

On Tuesday, the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s Spay Waggin’ was in Fall River at the Fall River Fire Museum at 1181 North Main Street to spay/neuter 30 animals as part of an ongoing collaborative effort with ARL, the Massachusetts Animal Fund (MAF), and Fall River Animal Control.

For four years, ARL has hosted the clinic in collaboration with MAF and Fall River Animal Control. The surgeries are under the MAF voucher program, which distributes vouchers to qualifying low-income pet owners to cover the cost of the important procedure.

Due to high demand, many clients have been on a waiting list for a number of months to have their pets spayed or neutered, and ARL is pleased to once again be providing this vital service that’s greatly needed in the Fall River Community.

“Fall River is already a struggling community, but since the pandemic, it seems as if getting spay/neuter services has proven to be even more difficult,” said Cynthia Berard-Cadima, Fall River Animal Control Officer. “People contact us daily, asking for funds. Many are out of work and our homeless community is growing. We are stretching every dime and our veterinarians are donating time and services more than ever.”

Clients began arriving with their animals around 8:30 a.m. and will be picking up their animals in the afternoon following surgery and recovery time.

Clinics like this that provide subsidized spay and neuter services are at the core of MAF, which is primarily funded by the voluntary tax check off (Line 33f) on the Massachusetts resident income tax form. Since 2014, the MAF voucher program has helped provide spay and neuter services for more than 17,500 animals.