P. 16 - LA PLAYA
JULY / JULIO 2014
WWW.PLAYACOMMUNITY.COM
NEW DIRECTION FOR SPAY THE STRAYS
their adaptive nature.
S
pay the Strays (STS) is a
Panamanian non-profit organization. They are dedicated to
reducing the stray dog and cat populations in the beach and mountain
neighborhoods along the Pacific coast
of Panama. The volunteer run group
has been working in conjunction with
Spay Panama Since 2007, and has
sterilized more than 3,000 animals.
Through fundraising and donations
STS is able to offer low-income families
the opportunity to spay/neuter their
pets. While the preset cost of the
procedure is $15 for cats and $25 for
dogs, no animal is turned away from a
clinic. Pet owners are asked to donate
only what they can afford. For some
that donation is $100.00, for others its
$1.00.
Recently Spay the Stays introduced
two new members to their team, Patrice
Kumaran and her husband, Dr. Jay
Kumaran. Both Patrice and Dr. Jay
bring a lifetime of veterinary experience
to the Spay the Stray team. Patrice is a
trained veterinarian nurse, and Jay a
doctor of veterinary medicine. Patrice
has been working on the STS management team to coordinate clinics on the
ground, while Dr. Jay is on board as a
veterinarian consultant.
We had the opportunity to speak with
Dr. Jay and Patrice about their
backgrounds and prospective goals
going forward working with STS.
Before arriving in Panama Dr. Jay and
Patrice owned their own veterinarian
practice in Fort Wayne, Indiana. From
2004 to 2010 Dr. Jay and his wife
supported Black Pine, an animal
sanctuary in Northern Indiana. At Black
Pine the two worked primarily with large
cats. Among their patients were lions
and tigers, many of which had been
abandoned by their private owners.
Dr. Jay spoke to his experience at
Black Pine as an exciting and adventurous one. He said: “While you can
extrapolate from domestic cats, there
are still a lot of unknowns.” Patrice and
Jay’s experience working