PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Lynda Naclerio, Member of the Public, on Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Services
7:36:30
·
150 sec
Lynda Naclerio, a resident of Pelham Gardens in the Bronx, shares her personal experiences with rescuing cats and the challenges of affording spay/neuter services. She emphasizes the urgent need for low-cost spay/neuter options in New York City.
- Rescued multiple cats, including a calico tabby and her kitten in 2019, and a tuxedo cat with kittens during the pandemic
- Faced high costs for spay/neuter services: $495 for neutering and $675 for spaying, which limited her ability to help other street cats
- Eventually found more affordable options through the Humane Society of Westchester, but had to travel outside her area
- Stresses the importance of accessible, low-cost spay/neuter services to help manage the cat population and support rescuers
Lynda Naclerio
7:36:30
Oh, okay.
7:36:32
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak.
7:36:35
I submitted my testimony already.
7:36:39
Mostly about the cats that I have rescued off my porch after they found me.
7:36:46
I live in the Pelham Gardens area of the Bronx, New York.
7:36:49
In 2019, I rescued a Calico tabby that just befriended me.
7:36:57
And within 3 weeks of moving in, she gave birth to a kitten, and we fell in love with him.
7:37:04
I said, I don't care how many kittens she has.
7:37:07
I'm keeping them.
7:37:09
Because when I was a kid and we adopted from shelters, they were already spayed and neutered or they gave us a voucher or free spayed and neutering.
7:37:20
When I went to have this this one kitten, and my my little girlfriend spade neutered, they told me that it would cost 495 to neuter him and 675 to spay her.
7:37:36
And I was shocked but I had nowhere else to go because I'm limited by location.
7:37:43
And so I maxed out my care credit card and, in turn, couldn't help other cats that were out on the street.
7:37:54
That I knew, you know, I was feeding them, and I was saying, well, that's what it costs to stay in neuter them.
7:38:00
What am I gonna do?
7:38:04
And during the pandemic, a Tuxedo cat brought her kittens to me.
7:38:09
And I cried a lot, and then I said, don't I have to bring them in.
7:38:13
I have to do something because she just, again, picked me, and she is very friendly.
7:38:19
And I had to that I just made a lot of calls, and I found out that the humane society of Westchester worked with a vet in Artsley.
7:38:29
So it was a drive I had to recruit help from the Internet to drive us there.
Lynn C. Schulman
7:38:36
I just need you to sum up.
Lynda Naclerio
7:38:37
We do need we do need low cost.
7:38:41
We need low cost space and neuter because a third kitten showed up, and I was in between jobs, didn't have anything for it.
7:38:50
And thankfully, I could keep her because someone organized a free space for her on one of the vans.
7:38:58
So thank you, and thank you.
Lynn C. Schulman
7:39:00
Thank you.