Operation Catnip Spay/Neuter Clinic Instructions

 CLINIC REGISTRATION - RESERVATIONS REQUIRED

• You must contact Operation Catnip in order for us to determine eligibility and to get you on our clinic waiting list.

• We only schedule cats/caretakers one clinic at a time. When we know which clinic we can get you into, you’ll receive an email or phone call to get you registered for a specific date.

• If we email or leave you a message to register you for a clinic, you must complete the registration by replying to the email or leaving a message at the telephone number indicated to accept or decline the slots.

• If for any reason you do not show for a registered clinic, you must call back to get signed up again.

• Do not come to a clinic without a reservation confirmed by phone or email.

 TRAPS

Cats must be brought in commercial humane traps that are sized for cats or raccoons, one cat per trap. No cat carriers, cages or homemade traps! No huge traps! No full size cats in tiny, squirrel traps! Be sure to latch removable trap doors so your cats can’t escape when transporting them.

CATS

• You can bring up to 5 cats to a clinic. Do not bring more than you are registered for.

• No food or water after midnight the night before surgery. If a cat may have eaten the morning of surgery, you must let us know since complications could be fatal.

• The left ear of each cat will be cropped as a permanent mark to indicate an altered, vaccinated feral cat.

• Cats must be at least 3 months old. If you are not sure, bring the cat so our vets can tell if it is old enough.

• Females that have recently had kittens should not be brought in if the kittens are nursing and are too young to be on their own for any length of time. If the kittens are already eating solid or canned food, they should be fine on their own for a day. Be sure to provide them with food during the time that you’ve got Mom in her trap. If the kittens are nursing only and can be caught/trapped and brought with their Mom, then she can be brought in.

• After surgery, cats should be kept in their traps at least overnight. They may be released where they were trapped after they are fully awake. You will receive detailed Discharge Instructions when you pick up your cats.

• If you trap no cats and do not show up for your reservation, you must email back to get signed up again.

• If you trap fewer cats than you are registered for, bring what you’ve got. Do not fill in your empty slots by contacting others to use them. We overbook, knowing the overall success rate will be less than 100%.

• If you get have a reservation and then cannot trap, email to let us know you can’t use the slots. We’ll give them to the next caretaker in line on the waiting list. Do not give your unused slots to others.

• If two cats inadvertently get caught in one trap, bring an empty trap with you to the clinic. The cats will be separated after they are sedated. Even with multiple cats per trap, you may still only bring 5 cats at most to any one clinic.

 CLINIC & TRANSPORTING CATS

• Check-in is between 8AM and 9AM the morning of the clinic. Pick-up is the same day, usually around 3PM.

• Use common sense when transporting your cats!  They can’t regulate their body temperature until fully awake from anesthesia; transport inside a temperature-controlled vehicle. If you must use a truck, bring towels, blankets; cover traps in cool weather; bring a tarp in case of rain. Do not wrap traps too tightly; leave an opening for fresh air.

Our expense is approximately $20 per cat.

We depend on your tax-deductible contribution to be able to continue offering our spay/neuter clinics.