Running a High-Volume, High-Quality, Full-Time Spay/Neuter Clinic in Mexico
This week’s episode is packed with insight into running a high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter clinic in Mexico, so strap in and meet Laura, Founder of Coco’s Animal Welfare in Playa del Carmen! Today, we cover essential veterinary protocols for sterilization clinics, how to integrate pediatric spay/neuter and quick spay techniques, vaccination and disinfection protocols, and training volunteers and vets to prepare for large interventions like their November spay/neuter event, which sterilizes 1,000 animals over just three days! Laura also shares advice on how to find funding and finding it before starting this important work to ensure we have the capacity to do it well. Coco’s redefines what a “cat cafe” means with their ingenious community cat care program for local hotels and also shares strategies on how to engage visiting tourists to take responsibility for their rescue rather than leaving animals with local shelters.
Coco’s Animal Welfare is happy to share its veterinary protocols with anyone who reaches out, just email info@cocosanimalwelfare.org.
Listen to Episode #4 Now:
BIO:
Laura Raikes, originally from Wales, developed a passion for animal rescue from a young age. After moving to Playa del Carmen, Mexico, she founded Coco’s Animal Welfare in 2009, inspired by the loss of her cat, Coco. Her organisation focuses on sterilisation and improving animal welfare in the region. Among other things, Coco’s has an ongoing, permanent sterilisation clinic, where in their big November sterilisation event, they spayed/neutered 1,000 animals in just 3 days! Coco’s also offers a low-cost support program for cats and dogs so they can get accessible medical care, as well as has developed a cat cafe project across local hotels. Over 15 years, they have helped sterilise a whopping 67,830 dogs and cats, rescued 1,363 kittens, rescued 463 dogs, and helped 17,710 cats and kittens and 10,656 dogs under their rescue support program. In 2024 alone, Coco’s helped 9,876 animals, 4,274 of those being sterilisations!