"Amigos de Animales" Helping the animal population in Boquete

There is a group here that was started by an American expat several years ago that has sterilization clinics every month to reduce the dog and cat population. Imagine all these dogs running free and most had not been 'fixed'. Now, the group, Amigos de Animales, helps the locals here get their pets neutered or spayed. It is a great organization, with the help of many volunteers, and vets from the area and also vets who come in from Costa Rica. It is like an assembly line of sorts, but done so well, you would be amazed. The animal population is now much more under control and a blessing to all not having hundreds more unwanted pets running loose and hungry. They usually 'fix' around 50-100 animals at each clinic.

I have worked in a couple of the clinics and the organization has it down like a well run play. Sterile cotton and alcohol and thermometers everywhere. Each animal has it's "own" person who takes it through the whole wake-up procedure. After the operation, the dogs are laid on a blanket on the floor, and the cats on tables on clean towels with their "person" rubbing them and talking to them, keeping another towel or blanket on them to keep them warm, and taking their temperature every 5 minutes to make sure all is well.

They just had the big clinic today and I volunteered. Usually I sit at the cat table and wake them up after surgery, but today I was taught a new job. I shaved the tummies and "other areas" and disinfected the area just before being moved to the surgery table.

I will post a pic soon that I had to take even though I was in surgical gloves and had betadine all over. Call it a highly innovative and low cost cat carrier!