January 25, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 25, 2016
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Natalie Bailey, Moxley Carmichael
865-544-0088/[email protected]
Courtney Kliman, Marketing Coordinator
Young-Williams Animal Center
865-705-8008/[email protected]
Sponsored by PetSmart Charities®, $20 spay surgeries available for female cats
Warmer weather may be weeks away, but Young-Williams Animal Center Spay/Neuter Solutions wants cat owners to “Beat the Heat” and prevent unwanted litters from being born this spring during a cat’s heat cycle.
Animal shelters commonly refer to spring as “kitten season” because that is when they receive the largest influx of unwanted litters that can become difficult to adopt.
Young-Williams Animal Center Spay/Neuter Solutions is offering a special “Beat the Heat” campaign sponsored by PetSmart Charities, the largest funder of animal welfare efforts in North America. Through the campaign, Young-Williams Animal Center will provide $20 spay surgeries for female cats during the month of February.
“Female cats can have as many as three litters a year, and kittens can breed as young as 4 months old,” said Jeff Ashin, CEO of Young-Williams Animal Center. “Most people don’t want to see their cat get pregnant over and over again, so hopefully our ‘Beat the Heat’ campaign will serve as a gentle reminder to cat owners to sterilize their cats before they go into heat this year.”
The $20 rate is even less than the organization’s normal low-cost price and is available to anyone, regardless of residence. Cat owners must mention the “Beat the Heat” campaign when they schedule their appointment, and the offer is based on availability.
Thanks to the PetSmart Charities grant, Young-Williams Animal Center will provide 300 female cat “Beat the Heat” sterilizations for the $20 cost in February. Please visit www.young-williams.org or call 865-215-6677 for more information or to schedule an appointment.
Spaying and neutering is one of the most effective ways to reduce the homeless pet population and is safe for kittens as young as eight to 10 weeks old, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. Spaying a female cat before the first heat cycle can be beneficial and improve the health of the pet by reducing the risk of certain reproductive cancers and infections.
PetSmart Charities’ “Beat the Heat” campaign provides more than $598,870 to spay/neuter clinics to fund affordable, high-quality spay and neuter surgeries for 17,488 female cats across the country during the month of February.
About Young-Williams Animal Center
Young-Williams Animal Center reminds the community to please spay and neuter your pets.
The Young-Williams Animal Center is the official animal shelter for Knox County and the City of Knoxville. The center is a nonprofit organization, community-supported through public and private donations, that turns no animal away and is dedicated to the sheltering and placement of animals, general animal welfare, and public education of companion animal issues.
Young-Williams Animal Center is located off Sutherland Avenue at the entrance to John Tarleton Park at 3201 Division St. Young-Williams Animal Village is located at 6400 Kingston Pike adjacent to Deane Hill Drive. Both locations are open seven days a week from noon-6 p.m.
For more information about Young-Williams Animal Center, including detailed driving directions, call 865-215-6599 or visit www.young-williams.org.
About PetSmart Charities
PetSmart Charities, Inc. is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that saves the lives of homeless pets. More than 400,000 dogs and cats find homes each year through our adoption program in all PetSmart® stores and our sponsored adoption events. PetSmart Charities grants more money to directly help pets in need than any other animal welfare group in North America, with a focus on funding spay/neuter services that help communities solve pet overpopulation. PetSmart Charities is a 501(c)(3) organization, separate from PetSmart, Inc.
Maria Cornelius
