This Place Is Doing Good Work

About a year ago, I found out about UCAN, which stands for United Coalition for Animals. It's located just across the river from me, in Cincinnati. This is where my next-door neighbor and I have taken all the feral cats we have trapped. There is a ravine behind our houses that has a sort of rock cave and lots of greenery, and there is a cat colony living there. So far we have trapped six cats and had them spayed (they have all turned out to be females). My neighbor adopted one and my husband and I adopted one. The rest were released back outside, and we feed them and provide shelter for them in the winter. There are still about six more that need to be trapped. We are working on that.


This is a non-profit clinic, and the only one in this area as far as I know. I found out about it when I called the local shelter, and they referred me to a woman who works with a local group called Friends of Animals. In addition to spay and neuter, they also provide vaccinations at low cost and physical exams for $5.00. The fee to spay or neuter a cat is $35.00. If the cat is a feral cat, they have a grant from PetSmart that pays $20.00 of the fee, so you end up paying only $15.00. By law, the cat must also have a rabies shot, for which you pay a small amount.

Yesterday, I went there with my next-door neighbors. They were taking their two cats (one adopted from the back yard) for physical exams. Every other Saturday there is a free clinic for exams and vaccinations. The service is first-come-first-serve, and the waiting room was full. There were lots of dogs on leashes and cats in carriers. We had a two-hour wait. It was amazing how well-behaved all the animals were. They were in close quarters and no one barked or growled. One woman had three small dogs on leashes. They were very sweet and patient as they waited. Here they are in the photo below:


There was a very sweet boy helping out, who spoke to all the animals:


The clinic is supported by donations and grants. They also have a Thrift Shop in the back, where hundreds of donated items are for sale. The prices are very reasonable. I found a pretty blue and white Chinese bowl for $1.00 and two very nice Limoges china ramekins for a quarter each.