07/22/2026
This is so true. There is a lot of work behind the scenes and sometimes securing an appointment is hard. However, with Bruce Veterinary Services her scheduling makes it much easier to grab a spot but you may have to transport further.
We have funds for three cats to get fixed still. She is coming to El Dorado Aug 6. Reach out if you want to get a cat to that clinic.
You Wait 2 Months for Spay / Neuter Appointments and then THIS Happens...
When Brianna's friend "Darnell" called about a neighbor with a cat population problem, she wanted to help. She had already helped Darnell with her own cats when she learned that the cost of spaying her two female cats was completely out of the question. As a single mom, Darnell could barely afford the lot rental in her mobile home park. But she also couldn't say no to the hungry cats at her door. So, Brianna helped her get into a low cost spay neuter clinic. Problem solved!
Most of Darnell's neighbors were struggling financially as well, so the mobile home park was full of stray cats and the unaltered offspring of resident's cats. Brianna secured some precious appointments, loaned them some traps and mentored the owners on how to set them. Before the appointment, she provided the low-income owners with tasty KFC chicken bait and told them to hold the food the night before trapping so they'd be good and hungry.
On trapping day, Brianna drove to the clinic to help the people check in the cats. But when she arrived, the people weren't there. She had already called earlier to verify that they had the cats, but they didn't answer. She called again. And again. No answer.
Later, she learned that they had slept in. :-( One of the downsides of helping people is that those people may not understand just how difficult it is to get spay / neuter appointments. You are helping them, so they don't see all the work that goes on behind the scenes. They will cancel last minute because they are tired or forgot to bait the trap or the weather was too hot or too cold or too wet. "We can probably make it next week..." Nope, next week won't work and those pregnant cats will probably have kittens by the time appointments become available weeks or months later. Meanwhile, OTHER cats could have been altered at those appointments.
What do you do when the people you are helping don't follow through or decide to ignore your directions ?
For some TNR volunteers, the answer is to walk away. Is this bad? Not if appointments are going to be wasted! There are millions of cats needing spay / neuter in our country and every wasted appointment is a lost opportunity.
For others, walking away is just too hard once they know about the cats. We all know that a few unaltered cats can turn into 40 or 50 cats in just a couple years and nobody wants to see that!
Every situation is different, so we can't give you a pat answer on how to deal with flakey cat owners. I will tell you how some of us have worked with people who don't follow through.
1 - Have a conversation with the people first. Sometimes there is a good reason they failed to show up. One older man I helped failed to show up and wasted 4 appointments! I was angry, but so grateful I didn't express my feelings when I found out the reason. His wife had suffered a stroke on trapping day and was in the hospital fighting for her life.
2 - If you decide to give a no-show a second chance, ask for pre-payment to the clinic to cover the low-cost spay neuter fee. People are more likely to show up if they have to pay a small fee to cover the services. I've only had to do this once. I simply said, "Oh, I'm so sorry. They won't let me make more appointments for you unless you pre-pay." They showed up AND made a small donation.
3 - Show them how to make their own appointments. You can still assist them with traps and mentoring, but if they don't show up on time or have other issues with the clinic, that black mark is on THEM and not you. That is important because clinics and rescues who coordinate appointments may hold you responsible for their actions.
We can't control the actions of the people we are helping and I don't know ANY rescuer who hasn't had to deal with challenging people who fail to show up or follow through in some way. If you are helping people who don't follow through, it may make sense to move on and help with other cat situations. Even with all the wonderful volunteers out there doing TNR, there is an unlimited number of cats needing spay / neuter in our communities. You may be able to get dozens of cats fixed in the time it would take to get one flakey cat owner to actually show up with a couple cats. If you decide to stick it out, be very clear on your directions and timelines. If your directions and boundaries related to the assistance you can provide are clear, people are more likely to follow through. But don't feel bad if you have to choose someone else to help!
Kudos to all you patient trappers out there who have to deal with all sorts of people. We meet so many wonderful people, but if you ask any TNR volunteer they will tell you the truth. The hardest part of rescue isn't the cats--it's the challenging people they meet while trying to help the cats!
