MANATEE COUNTY (WSNN) – Pets get their shots and get micro-chipped at a free vaccine clinic in Manatee County.
Needles are scary, even for pups. But vaccines are necessary to keep pets safe and healthy. So, the Manatee County Animal Services hosted a free vaccination, microchip, and licensing clinic Saturday morning at Trailer Estates Clubhouse in Bradenton.
“It ensures that if anything happens, we can contact the owner regardless of where they’re at to let them know their pet is safe and try to get them back to them right away,” Manatee County Animal Services Outreach specialist Hans Wohlgefahrt said.
Manatee County pet owner, Libby Fisher just moved to Florida and wanted to update the records for her 15-year-old black lab, Bailey.
“We’re really excited keeping her up to date,” Fisher said. “She’s a nice old lady so we need to make sure she stays healthy, so this is a nice opportunity to do that.”
Plus, these clinics help prepare for hurricane season.
“When you have a disaster occur, we also hold the pets for a longer period of time, so we hold them off at least another month versus the three to five days that we hold them now,” Wohlgefahrt said.
About 200 pet owners came out to the free clinic, including Manatee County Commissioner, Misty Servia.
“It is so wonderful to be able to give back this way,” Servia said. “Because these people really need this for their pets, and they want it. They just don’t have the resources to get it done. So you can see how much need there is.”
Servia wants to push to have more clinics like this every year.
“That’s the best part, we know it’s free and we trust the people doing it,” Fisher said.
This is an effort to help those with financial struggles from the pandemic.
“I’m so happy we can offer these services because it does save people at least 100 dollars, where for some people right now, that’s a lot of money,” Wohlgefahrt said.
The free clinics were made possible through a $10,000 donation from the Manatee Community Foundation.
The next clinic is this Wednesday at the Manatee County Animal Services Palmetto Shelter. This one is sold out, but more clinics are coming next month, so stay tuned.
For more information on the free pet clinics, visit www.mymanatee.org/petclinic.