Leech Lake Legacy, in partnership with the Leech Lake Tribal Police and Kindest Cut, hosted our 4th spay/neuter and vaccination clinic at Leech Lake Reservation on May 17-18, 2013. The clinic was funded in part by the Leech Lake Environmental Health Services and a generous donor. Vaccinations for surgery patients was donated by Minnesota Spay Neuter Project.Leech Lake Legacy had approximately 25 volunteers, including Dr. Mary Wictor (shelter vet from Animal Allies in Duluth, MN) and a couple vet techs (thanks Danielle and Jill!). Most volunteers drove from the Twin Cities area and arrived in Cass Lake on Thursday afternoon/evening to begin setting up for the clinic. We had a few volunteers from the Bemidji area and from Federal Dam. Many thanks to the Tribal Police for providing lodging and food for the volunteers, and to Pike Bay Township for the $200 grocery store credit. Many volunteers took time off from work ... and we were very fortunate to have such an awesome group of volunteers.
On Friday morning, we were extremely fortunate to have Mike Smith, a Leech Lake spiritual elder, open up our clinic with an invocation and prayer. Migwitch Mike. Doors opened at 8:00 am on Friday, however, we had residents lining up starting at 6:30 am. The weather was gorgeous and the flow of residents and their pets was constant throughout the day. The Kindest Cut team was busy all day and worked till 10:00 pm on both Friday and Saturday night. Dr. Wictor provided wellness checks and vaccinations on Friday and Saturday. On Saturday, 4 specialty surgeries were also done (in addition to the spay/neuter surgeries): a hernia removal, a tumor removal, an eye enucleation, and surgery on a small dog with severe puncture wounds from a dog attack.
Here are stats from the clinic:
- 92 spay/neuter surgeries were completed (50 spays and 42 neuters)
- 63 animals were surrendered (37 cats, 25 dogs and an injured duck)
- 46 wellness checks and vaccinations were provided to pets of residents
Of the 63 surrendered animals, 34 went to the Animal Humane Society and 29 went to Animal Allies in Duluth. All will be vetted then placed up for adoption.
We are extremely grateful for all the amazing people who come together to make our clinics as successful as they are ... the Kindest Cut staff, the volunteers, the Tribal Police, the residents, the Leech Lake Environmental Health Division, our partner shelters, Dr. Wictor, and our donors who make it possible for us to continue our work.
And I would like to give a special shout out to Jenny Fitzer (co-founder of Leech Lake Legacy). Jenny organizes all of our spay/neuter and vaccination clinics and does a phenomenal job recruiting volunteers and ensuring everything runs smoothly. Thanks also to Rory Haaland (Leech Lake CSO) and to Natasha W. (Leech Lake Environmental Health) for your efforts in helping us get the word out about our clinic, and to Ken Washington (Leech Lake Police Chief) for your continued support; thanks to the absolutely amazing Kindest Cut team!; and finally, thanks to all of the amazing LLL volunteers who helped at this clinic: Heidi, Diane D, Sandra, Terri H, Jean, Jenna, Shaldon, Jill, Danielle, Melissa, Martha, Sarah B., Kathleen, Laura B., Matt K., Emily, Nancy and Tom, Amber, Dinie, Kay, Carrie, Ashley, and Dr. Wictor.
And my role for the clinic was to take photos ... I did my best to capture the essence of the event ... the camaraderie, the spirit, the friendship, the love, the kindness, the patience and the desire to help each other in community was truly moving .... so to our friends at Leech Lake Reservation, thank you for welcoming us into your community; thank you for trusting us and for partnering with us.
I put together a video from some of the photos I took:
and here is a link to more photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mchanrasmi/sets/72157633528722607/
Migwich.
Marilou/Leech Lake Legacy Co-founder
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