A primary provider of affordable veterinary care in Anchorage has changed their name: The Alaska SPCA is now Alaska PAWS, which stands for Alaska Partners for Animal Welfare and Safety.
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Kelly Donnelly, the nonprofit’s executive director and CEO, said Alaska PAWS is not affiliated with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or ASPCA, a national organization that works to prevent animal cruelty.
The name change clears up long-standing confusion, Donnelly said.
“Many people had thought that we were one in the same,” she said. “People reporting animal welfare abuses or concerns were often confused.”
What is now Alaska PAWS was founded by a passionate group of Anchorage residents more than 70 years ago. The organization provides low-cost veterinary care for a variety of services, ranging from vaccinations and surgeries to dental extractions.
Alaska PAWS is based in Anchorage, but travels to remote communities around the state for health clinics. Most rural communities in the state don’t have local veterinarians and are too small to support a clinic on their own, according to the National Library of Medicine.
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When visiting those rural areas, Donnelly said, the group focuses on spaying and neutering dogs, and occasionally cats.
“We’re trying to work with local communities to help prevent unwanted litters and any of the public health dangers that come with animals roaming freely,” Donnelly said.
A group of Alaska Native organizations is releasing a new rural veterinary public health program to care for animals in 80 villages across the state.
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