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NATCHEZ — Between May 1 and June 15, Hoofbeats and Pawprints Rescue helped to save the lives of 291 animals from the Miss-Lou.

During that time, the Hoofbeats team transported the animals — dogs, puppies, cats and kittens — to no-kill shelters and adoption centers across the nation where they receive spay and neuter surgery and more easily be able to find adoptive homes, said a press release from Jay Fitch of Hoofbeats and Pawprints Rescue.

“The HPR team completed five cross-country trips in six weeks: two to Chicago, two to Pennsylvania and one to Missouri,” Fitch said. “Pets had water, were closely monitored and, on longer trips, were served light meals enroute. This effort involved driving a total of 9,761 miles.”

He said vehicle operating costs for transports average $0.75 per mile. The total cost of the five trips was $7,321, which he said was supported by community donations.

“A total of 212 pets originated in the Miss-Lou area and were transported from the HPR shelter,” Fitch said. “One trip to Chicago was done in collaboration with a transport partner and included 79 pets from multiple shelters across Louisiana, in addition to 16 from HPR.”

Roughly half of the transported animals were cats or kittens and half were dogs or puppies, he said.

“Notably, 36 pets from Natchez and HPR were transported to a veterinary medical school for spay and neuter procedures before being made available for adoption at a suburban Chicago adoption center, he said.

While each transport occurs, other HPR crew members deep clean and prepare the HPR facilities to welcome approximately 170 more homeless pets from the community so that they could be ready for transport when their turn to go comes.

“Our primary goal is to prevent the need for euthanasia at area shelters due to lack of space,” said HPR President Kathy Fitch.

“In recent years, we have become a primary intake shelter taking in the majority of pets directly from the community. We are on track to save between 1,500 and 1,800 abandoned and homeless pets from the greater Natchez area this year,” Kathy Fitch said. “The number of homeless pets is extremely high. HPR receives an average of 25 calls each day from individuals seeking help. Sadly, with limited resources, we are having to say ‘no’ more often than we’d like.

“We are not a sanctuary and cannot accept pets that do not have a reasonable opportunity for placement,” she said.

Hoofbeats and Pawprints Rescue is a non-profit community-based organization dedicated to saving pets, supporting local spay-neuter efforts and educating the public about animal needs throughout the Miss-Lou area.

For more information, see hoofbeatsandpawprintsrescue.org.