PAWS Chicago is looking to expand its signature “no kill” shelter program to the city’s South Side, as the organization has opened a new community center in the Englewood neighborhood.
On Thursday, the organization unveiled its new community center, dedicated to providing much-needed services to area residents.
The new outreach center, located in the basement of St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church on West 65th Street, will offer an on-site veterinarian to offer medical care for animals, and residents are thrilled that they will now be able to give their pets high-quality care much closer to home.
“Now that they are here I can bring Coco (my dog) here to get checked up because I am a senior citizen,” resident Gloria Capler said.
For the past five years, PAWS Chicago has run a mobile canvassing unit dedicated to helping spay and neuter pets in the Englewood community.
“When we started here five years ago, 90 percent of the animals weren’t fixed,” PAWS Chicago founder Paula Fasseas said. “They’ve done incredible work here.”
In addition to medical services and spaying and neutering, PAWS will stock a pet food pantry to distribute food and other supplies to needy families. The organization also announced that it will expand its “trap, neuter, and release” program to help control the homeless cat population.
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Since PAWS began working in the neighborhood, the organization says it has helped more than 6,500 families and over 13,000 pets.
