THOMAS COUNTY, GA — A new mobile veterinary clinic is partnering with All Saints TNR to bring affordable spay and neuter services directly to Thomas County, helping tackle a growing stray cat population.
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A Thomas County trap-neuter-return program that started in a one-bedroom apartment bathroom has now spayed and neutered more than 700 stray cats, and a new partnership with a mobile veterinary clinic is helping the effort reach even more animals.
All Saints TNR began about three years ago when founder Kristen Manza moved to the area and noticed a large stray cat population with little support.
"We started maybe about three years ago when I moved here, and I saw that there was a lot of cats and there wasn't really much going on to help them. So I just started trapping, neutering, and returning them, and I kept them in my one-bedroom apartment bathroom," Manza said.
The program has grown significantly since then.
"We have trap neutered and returned, as of today, 737 cats," Manza said.
Despite that progress, Manza says demand for services has not slowed down.
All Saints TNR has now partnered with Paws First Mobile Veterinary Clinic to increase the number of cats it can serve in a single day.
"So we've started partnering with her just so we can get more cats in in one day. So our first clinic we had in the middle of February, and we had 20 cats spayed and neutered that day," Manza said.
Dr. Tracie Guy, the veterinarian who founded Paws First Mobile Veterinary Clinic, said the mobile model is designed to bring care directly to communities that need it most.
"We realized there was really a need to be able to bring those services to the community, especially to underserved our rural areas where there might be less veterinary coverage," Guy said.
Guy said reducing shelter overcrowding is a central goal of the clinic's work.
"We have an overpopulation problem in the state of Georgia…and a big goal of ours is reducing the number of animals going into shelters," Guy said.
Back in Thomas County, Manza says the community response to the partnership has been strong, and the next clinic date is already full.
"We've had people contact us like 'Can I bring more cats in?' The demand is there," Manza said.
"The next one is on March 22nd, and we're full for that day as well," Manza said.
With the mobile clinic planning to return on a regular basis, organizers say they hope to help more cats every month.
The mobile clinic costs $75 per cat, which includes a spay or neuter procedure and a rabies shot.
Donations of food, money, and supplies are also being accepted to support the effort through All Saints Cat TNR.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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