TUESDAY, FEB. 25, 2014 – Another spay & neuter outreach is planned this week in two Coachella Valley locations.

The Riverside County Department of Animal Services mobile spay & neuter bus, nicknamed The ANSWER on Wheels, heads to the Mecca area on Wednesday and Thursday (Feb. 26 and Feb. 27). The large bus will be parked outside Riverside County's Mecca Family Health Clinic located at 91-275 66th Ave., 92254.

The county is only doing surgeries on these two days. Although the county has already pre-booked surgeries for pet owners, Animal Services employees will be ready to take signups for future spay & neuter outreaches. The department's mobile clinic plans a return trip to Mecca sometime in about a month.

On Friday and Saturday (Feb. 28 and March 1), Riverside County Animal Services teams up once more with the mobile unit and veterinary professionals with the Lucy Pet Foundation in the city of Indio. The Thousand Oaks-based Lucy Pet Foundation team and Riverside County will be providing free spay & neuter surgeries, plus free vaccinations (capped at 250 per day) at the Indio Municipal Golf Course, located just east of Jackson Street at 83-040 Avenue 42.

The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians made a sizable in-kind donation to assist the Lucy Pet Foundation in the nonprofit organization's outreach in the Coachella Valley.

The outreaches are part of an ongoing effort by Riverside County Animal Services to offer solutions to pet owners in need of these valuable services.

"Riverside County has been able to offer the free services, thanks to a generous grant by the ASPCA," Chief Veterinarian Dr. Allan Drusys said. "We're going to continue these efforts through the spring."

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) provided $40,000 in grant funding to Riverside County to organize spay & neuter events specifically in the eastern Coachella Valley.

Animal Services representatives are speaking directly with residents in the Mecca area to fill future appointment slots.