Story by Rebecca West
Images courtesy of TAT
Over the last year and a half, the Tucson Action Team (TAT) has managed to get 720 dogs surgically altered via its “Hip to Snip” spay and neuter program. We asked founder Lara Iacobucci Paris about the remarkable success of TAT’s efforts to expand the initiative here in southern Arizona. She told us that coming up with creative ways to treat people with respect, regardless of their ability to pay, has gone a long way towards making that happen.
Aiding TAT’s successful approach of using kindness and respect is the group’s habit of going above and beyond with steps like providing transportation to individuals scheduling spay and neuter procedures, as well as an affordable fee of only $55, which includes a post-surgical cone and pain meds for the animal to go home with, as well as a follow-up appointment.
“We don’t work on a first-come, first-served basis,” Iacobucci Paris explains. “We contact people ahead of time to ensure their dog is ready for surgery, that they have transportation, that the pet parents are prepared, and that everyone who needs the help is provided the care. We usually have one to two clinics a month where we do 10-15 dogs. Everyone waits in their car, and the vet techs come out to them.
“We also offer single appointments for people who may not be able to attend the clinics. If a pet parent can’t make it—maybe a person works overnight or has to drop their kids off at school and can’t make that clinic, or maybe the dog is more fearful or bitey—we schedule a single appointment for them to go into one of our clinic partners. Then we just pay the clinic for that one single appointment.
“The price changes, but if someone doesn’t have the ability to pay, there is oftentimes funding available based on certain criteria. We do our best to keep costs low, and we try to be accommodating just so everyone’s taken care of.”
She added, “The need is great. Overpopulation is a huge issue. I’ve worked with PACC and other pet partners. Much of what they do is done with volunteers and donations. We kept asking ourselves how can we get more dogs fixed with what we have to work with? What can we do differently?”
The move of making it easier, more respectful, and more affordable is working for them, but it’s a multi-pronged approach. To help stem the tide, they’re in their second year of trying to get a bill passed in the legislature to get dog breeders to register with the state in order to monitor the health of the dogs and to ensure that breeders are paying their fair share of taxes, the lack of which she feels is contributing to the current problem.
Another angle that many in the animal welfare and rescue community agree on is educating the public about not only getting their pets fixed, but the fact that there are already homeless animals out there of the age and breed potential pet owners might be looking for waiting to be loved. In the long run, adopting rather than shopping could ultimately reduce the incidence of medical maladies that are so often the result of overbreeding.
But that’s another story for another day. In the meantime, to help combat the dilemma, TAT is working with various rescues to match the right dog with the right home. This includes match-making for people who reach out to them seeking breed-specific canines. Know this: If there’s a breed, there’s a dedicated rescue that caters to them.
Members of the public can fill out a form online, and TAT will do its best to find animals that fit their particular criteria. This is terrific because so few people seem to realize these rescues exist and are all too ready to buy from a breeder rather than rescue a dog in need of a home. You’d think the savings alone would be enough to sway the public, but no.
In January 2024, TAT became a nonprofit with the aim of giving a voice to dogs so they can have a brighter, safer future. With that comes trying to change laws and ordinances at the local and state levels, educating the community and children in schools, helping people find resources for food and care when needed, and, of course, aiding in controlling the pet population.
If you’d like to support their important and often life-saving work, go to tucsonactionteam.com/give
