When Spaying & Neutering Becomes the Stuff of High Drama

Two days ago, H.O.P.E. Animal Foundation, a spay, neuter, and vaccine clinic in Fresno, announced that folks who live in certain zip codes in Fresno County will be able to fix their pets for a discounted price. Nice, right?

(courtesy of H.O.P.E. Animal Foundation)

Not if you read the comments the notice attracted on Facebook. Some people were really disappointed about their Fresno County zip not qualifying for the discount. So disappointed, in fact, that H.O.P.E. had to write a second post explaining that it’s a nonprofit foundation that relies on donations in order to offer low-cost services to pet owners, and that this means the clinic is limited in the amount of services it can provide.

Now, we can go ahead and dismiss the Facebook anger as the internet being the internet. Or—and stay with me here—we can take the Leslie Knope approach and see this as a good thing.

People are finally recognizing how important it is to keep the pet population down, and they want to do something about it. This is great! Because we all know how this works: fewer animals being born means fewer animals ending up in shelters, which means fewer animals that have to be put down due to overcrowding. And I don’t know about you, but I hate the idea of animals being killed simply because they can’t find a home.

So I’m going to follow the advice H.O.P.E. gave to angry pet owners on its Facebook page:

Create the change that you want to see. If you don’t like the services, staffing, Facebook or programs DONATE YOUR time, money and resources. If you don’t have any of that then do something nice. Share our Facebook page, write a positive review, do something!”

After I finish this post, I’m going to leave a review on the clinic’s Facebook page (my dog was neutered at H.O.P.E. and has received all of his vaccinations there), then make a donation—a small one because I am not Rockefeller, for crying out loud.

Then I’m going to feel good all day thinking that maybe my actions today will help save the lives of animals in the future, and then I’ll probably eat some pizza later (unrelated).

Information about H.O.P.E. Animal Foundation can be found on its website, where you can also make a donation if you feel so inclined.

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Jason Farris

Head YES man at FresYes.com

I grew up in Fresno. Relaxed in its calm breezes, listened with my dad to the crack of the bat at little league baseball games when I was a kid and now take my son to do the same at minor league games. I broadened my mind at its schools (I went to high school right here at San Joaquin Memorial, and to college at Fresno State!) I love that if I drive for two hours in one direction, I can be in the mountains. For two hours in another, luxuriating on a California beach. I can enjoy the cosmopolitan atmosphere of San Francisco or Los Angeles, but still be able to come home to relaxation, calm, and quiet.

I love where I live, and I also love what I do. I'm lucky to be able to work in a profession in which I get to build relationships; one that has me meeting new people each and every day and helping them to build new lives in my beloved city. I'm lucky enough to work in a profession in which I can marry cutting-edge technologies and marketing techniques to good, old-fashioned, nose-to-the-grindstone work. I am lucky enough to work in a profession that allows me to work as an advocate for my clients; to use every tool at my disposal to get a job done well for them, and with as little stress and expense as possible.

I love my city. I love my job. One inspires my excellence for the other.

Fresno? I say FresYES

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