Flatbush Cats shares a construction update on the brand new affordable veterinary clinic you're helping us build right here in the heart of Brooklyn, New York!
Update on Our New Affordable Spay Neuter Clinic
Hi, this is Will - I’m excited to share some progress updates on the new affordable spay neuter clinic you’re helping us build in Brooklyn.
You shared our belief that the status quo - overcrowded shelters, thousands of cats fighting to survive outside - is simply unacceptable. You helped us begin the next chapter on this long but exciting journey.
Here’s where we are as of early November 2022:
We signed a lease!
A ten-year lease, actually! We’ve got a beautiful space right on Flatbush Ave in the heart of Brooklyn, close to mass transit and easily accessible for community members. (Brooklyn has 2.5 million residents, so that’s a lot of neighbors!) Over the next decade, you’ll help more than 60,000 cats receive the care they need at this location alone.
CONSTRUCTION IS UNDERWAY RIGHT NOW.
Construction in NYC is slow (and expensive!), but we’re on our way. We’ve secured permits and begun construction on our new space.
After framing is complete, we’ll be moving onto electrical, plumbing, and installing a high end HVAC system to accommodate air exchange protocols and medical gas removal (when touring other clinics, HVAC was the top complaint - best not to skimp here).
There are significant supply chain delays affecting many items, including HVAC system components, but we’re ordering far in advance. Things will come up, and we’ll deal with it. In future updates we’ll talk about the clinic design, veterinary equipment needed to launch, and more.
We hired an amazing vet.
We're excited to welcome Dr. Casey Singh, the first full-time veterinarian for Flatbush Cats!!
Rescue, TNR, and spay neuter are her "happy place" in the veterinary world, but she has also led teams in an emergency hospital during the height of COVID, and trained veterinary technicians as an Associate Professor at a vet school.
Dr. Casey Singh is deeply passionate about our mission - she previously volunteered her time to do spay/neuter surgeries with a local TNR group - driving there directly the next morning after long overnight shifts at the ER.
We’re so grateful to be working alongside her, and I’m excited for you to get to know her.
Dr. Casey Singh holding a black and white kitten.
We created a pop-up spay neuter clinic while waiting for our main clinic to be ready.
The need for spay neuter is massive in New York - why wait, right?
So while construction is underway, we launched a pop-up spay neuter clinic at a donated space, so that Dr. Singh can get started performing spay neuter surgeries. By using equipment that we needed to order anyway for the clinic, our only additional costs are the supplies, medication, and vet techs / assistants. We’ll perform between 10-20 surgeries / week until the clinic opens. A huge thank you to our friends at Meow Parlour for donating space for this pop-up.
We’ve got more ground to cover with fundraising.
We still have a ways to go until open - and supply chain issues, record inflation increases and up-front costs in securing the space have almost doubled our original budget - but we’re confident that with your help we will reach this important goal.
This clinic will save thousands of lives for the next decade. We’ve got to make it happen.
A black, gray, and beige trio of kittens that we rescued in Brooklyn this year.
We all deserve the love and companionship that pets provide, and access to the veterinary care our pets need. Thank you for making that possible. We appreciate your partnership.
Flatbush Cats is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and your donations are tax deductible. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter or making a one-time gift today.
PS - If you’re interested in learning more about naming opportunities at the clinic, or would like to speak with someone about your gift, please contact lee@flatbushcats.org or 607-242-3015.