fp Turks and Caicos

Our four-footed friends on North Caicos received an early Christmas when a team from the Turks and Caicos Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals visited the island on Saturday, Dec. 11, to provide vaccination services.

TCSPCA volunteer veterinarian and Provo resident Dr. Rich Sefcik, TCSPCA Director Susan Blehr and volunteer Barb Petri made the early morning start on the 6:30 a.m. ferry to North.

Despite the fact that there were two funerals and a wedding taking place that day, many North Caicos pet owners made time to visit the clinic to ensure that their special pets received their annual parvo/distemper vaccines and their rabies vaccines. The TCSPCA also set up a pet care shop at the clinic where owners could purchase heartworm pills and flea and tick shampoos and sprays.

A total of 16 dogs and puppies received a parvo/distemper vaccine, and 10 dogs were given a rabies shot by the TCSPCA vet.

Funding for the clinic came from a portion of the $1,000 cheque the La Reve Gala Ball committee presented to the TCSPCA in July.

The clinic was supported by the North Caicos District Commissioners Office. District Commissioner McLean Handfield made arrangements for the clinic to be set up in the Horse Stable Community Center. The office also placed posters all over the island before the event to ensure a good turnout.

Transportation was generously provided by Pelican Car Rentals, and local resident Cheryl Gibbs made sure that the TCSPCA team members were fed and watered all day.

During 2010 the TCSPCA expanded its Outreach Program. It ran a vaccination and spay/neuter clinic in Middle Caicos, another family island which, like North, has no veterinarian or pet care facilities.

Based on the success of that first mobile clinic, the TCSPCA planned the Dec. 11 vaccination clinic in North Caicos. The group will return to North in early 2011 to run a mobile spay/neuter clinic.

The significant number of calls and personal reports made to the TCSPCA concerning the increasing number of stray dogs and feral cats on all our islands is an indicator that the problem is getting out of control. The TCSPCA is offering support to the government to reinstate the very successful humane trapping program which they ran from 2001 to 2005.

Dog owners are respectfully reminded that even when the new humane trapping program is fully functional, neutering or spaying their pets is vital to the health and welfare of pets. It takes just 92 breeding dogs a year to produce a thousand puppies.

If you would like to donate time, funds or expertise to the TCSPCA, please call 941-8846 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . The website is www.tcspca.com.