The second animal health clinic to be held in Rankin Inlet was a success, said Fire Chief Mark Wyatt, who organized the veterinarian visit.
The clinic was held from Nov. 10-16 and was booked solid.
Dr. Jonas Watson of the Winnipeg-based Grant Park Animal Hospital, once again, made the trip to Rankin Inlet to conduct the clinic.
Wyatt said the animal healthcare team arrived in the community on time and attended to all the appointments during a busy six days.
There were numerous surgeries performed during the visit, as well as check-ups and grooming.
“There was lots of everything performed during their visit,” said Wyatt. “We've been bringing them here twice a year for several years now, so we are making a dent in the community compared to other places.
“A lot of dogs in the community get spayed and are well taken care of now and that didn't happen here in the past.
“It's not routine, but it's a service that we offer to Rankin Inlet that really no other community, including Iqaluit even, does like we do.
“It's pretty fortunate, honestly, for the pet owners who live in Rankin.”
Wyatt said while the majority of the animals seen at the clinic were dogs, there are quite a few cats that were also cared for. There are actually a number of pet owners in Rankin Inlet who have pretty exotic felines, he pointed out.
“We'll hold our next clinic here in the coming spring. We've also done one in conjunction with a person in Baker Lake and we're going to try and accomplish the same thing in Arviat.
“We may try to piggyback the one in Arviat with the one we do here in the spring. Arviat, I think, would be very, very busy for a long time because there are a lot of dogs in that community.
“We'd be quite happy if we could get a clinic going in Arviat because it's something that the community really needs at this point in time.
“Our second clinic here this year was very successful, as usual, and people were very happy with the results.”
