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Animal Services Offers Vaccination & Identification Clinic
Mar 7, 2006 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Ria Brown, Public Information Specialist, Lee County Animal Services Lee County Animal Services Offers Annual Vaccination and Identification Clinic: Agency Joins National Campaign to Make "Everyday Tag Day" Fort Myers, Florida, March 7, 2006-Lee County Animal Services will hold its annual vaccination and identification clinic with specially priced packages for pet owners on Saturday, April 1, 2006 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the shelter, 5600 Banner Drive, Fort Myers, off Six Mile Cypress Pkwy., next to the Sheriff's Dept. The event is part of the national campaign sponsored by the American Humane Association to encourage all owners to license and microchip their companion animals. Animals that enter a shelter with a license tag or microchip nearly always are reunited with their owners. The following discounted packages will be available: #1 Rabies Vaccination, Microchip ID, County License* Sterilized pets - $20 #2 Rabies Vaccination & County License* Sterilized pets - $15 * To qualify for the discounted packages, all pets must have a microchip ID or purchase one. To further encourage permanent identification for pets, microchip IDs will be available for only $10 the entire month of April. A microchip ID is a small computer chip about the size of a grain of rice. It is implanted beneath the animal's skin between the shoulder blades. It is permanent identification that cannot be lost or removed and is read with a scanner carried by all animal control agencies and most veterinary clinics. Animal Services will continue strict enforcement of mandatory county requirements for rabies vaccinations and licensing for pets in 2006. Ensuring that pets and people are protected from serious diseases such as rabies and returning lost pets to their rightful owners are of the utmost concern to the agency. The key is being able to identify the pet's owner. In 2005 Animal Services took in more than 15,000 pets. Only 23% of the lost dogs and 2% of lost cats were reclaimed by their owners. While this is consistent with the national average for cats and much higher than national statistics (16%) for dogs, Lee County is still a long way from being able to identify all owned animals that enter the shelter. The goal for the clinic is to reach those pet owners who are not vaccinating and licensing their pets. This is an opportunity for them to bring their pets into compliance with the law, avoid fines, and protect their pets and families from serious disease. Following this clinic, neighborhood sweeps will begin by Animal Control Officers checking for license and vaccination violations; fines for those offenses can range from $75 to $500 each. For more information regarding vaccination and licensing requirements and microchip Identification, contact Lee County Animal Services at (239) 432-2083 or www.LeeLostPets.com. Photos and information about lost pets and pets for adoption is also available online. Lee County Animal Services provides animal control services throughout Lee County and operates an animal shelter to house stray and abandoned domestic animals. In addition to administering the pet licensing program for Lee County, the agency also offers low-cost spay/neuter programs, educational initiatives, and rabies and bite case control programs. All license fees collected are used for spay/neuter and education programs. The shelter is located off Six Mile Cypress Parkway next to the Lee County Sheriff's Dept.
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