The month of September saw the last of our fund-raisers for the year. Our sale of iris bulbs at the 49er festival on September 20 netted $600, and a follow-up sale at the Coyote Fest on September 27, 2014 gave us another $200. Thanks to the generosity of our members Jo and Joseph Balch, who raised and then donated all of the irises, we had a profit of 100%!

You might remember that NPC recently received a grant of $10,000 from the Mariposa SPCA, funds which will be used exclusively for spay and neuter services for dogs and cats in the Northside. Part of the motivation for the gift arose from the fact that Animal Control from Mariposa found themselves frequently traveling to Northside communities to pick up stray dogs and cats, so the need for increased spay/neuter services was obvious. The grant has already allowed us to expand the number of vouchers per month from 12 to 20, and we have been able to increase the value of the vouchers by almost 50%. This means that for some veterinary clinics the cost to the pet owner to have their dog or cat spayed or neutered is zero! Our thanks again to the Mariposa SPCA for helping Northside communities work to decrease the number of unwanted dogs and cats.

To request a voucher, or to obtain more information about our voucher program, call Kathleen at 209-732-6194.

Last month we told the story of Lorrie Sue McClary of Coulterville, who had a bad accident with her utility tractor. Her dogs Leroy, Sport and Pretzel did their best to help her and then find someone to release Lorie Sue from being pinned under her machine. Lorrie Sue’s injuries were severe, and she faces many months of recuperation. Fortunately, her devoted dogs are constantly at her side, doing things like licking the bare toes sticking out from her cast!

 Article by Tom Grave, NPC Vice-President