The Richmond SPCA has purchased A.L. Shilling Spay & Neuter and will operate a satellite clinic at the Mechanicsville location starting in March.
The location will be renamed the Richmond SPCA Smoky’s Spay & Neuter Clinic and will provide sterilization services for animals in the care of municipal shelters, private rescue groups and community cats brought by caregivers performing Trap, Neuter, Return.
“The Richmond SPCA has a long-standing commitment to making these services more accessible,” said Richmond SPCA Chief Executive Officer Tamsen Kingry, “so when we learned of the prospect of A.L. Shilling Spay & Neuter closing its doors, we moved to meet the demand for spay and neuter to ensure that public and private shelters and rescue groups can alter pets before adoption, which is essential to reducing the number of homeless animals being born.”
The clinic located at 7088 Mechanicsville Turnpike has operated as A.L. Shilling Spay & Neuter since 2018 and in that time has performed more than 16,000 surgeries. The Board of Directors for A.L Shilling Spay & Neuter said, “We are overjoyed to be able to pass the torch to an organization that is more than able to continue its important mission. Access to spay and neuter is vital to our progress towards a more happy, healthy and humane community.”
The practice will be closed during the month of February with an expected March reopening. Smoky’s Spay & Neuter Clinic will operate Monday through Thursday offering up to 100 surgeries weekly. Owned pets will continue to be seen at the Richmond SPCA’s Susan M. Markel Veterinary Hospital, which has provided full-service vet care at low cost since 2016 and is adjacent to the Robins-Starr Humane Center at 2519 Hermitage Road.
From 2004 to 2012 the Richmond SPCA performed more than 88,500 sterilization surgeries at Smoky’s Spay & Neuter Clinic, then located inside the organization’s humane center. The clinic name, which will now be used for the Mechanicsville location, honors the beloved, departed companion of an anonymous donor.
Shelter and rescue organizations can visit richmondspca.org/snip for additional information about services.
The Richmond SPCA, founded in 1891, is a no-kill humane organization dedicated to the guiding principle that every life is precious. As a national leader in humane care and education, the Richmond SPCA is building a more compassionate community with comprehensive programs designed to reduce pet homelessness.
For more information, visit richmondspca.org.
