A bright green van with the words Quick Fix displayed on its side will pull in front of Wilsonville Town Hall right as the sun comes up Feb. 24.

Greeting it will be animal owners ready to celebrate the 15th-annual Spay Day USA and the one-year anniversary of the Shelby County Humane Society’s Quick Fix program by getting their pets spayed or neutered.

“We have had such a successful first year. In fact, we just facilitated our 1,000 surgery on Jan. 13,” said Jessica Marable, Spay/Neuter programs administrator. “We are excited about the upcoming year and encourage everyone in the community to become a supporter of our efforts.”

The veterinarians at Alabama Spay/Neuter performed the society’s 1,000th surgery on a black lab named Widget. The dog was one of many picked up at locations around the county. The humane society performs this service to make things convenient for pet owners.

In fact, during the month of February, the humane society is offering an additional $5 off surgeries. They also offer to neuter a male cat for free when a female cat is spayed.

Without these surgeries the local pet population would continue to skyrocket. Shelby Humane Society already brings in about 7,000 animals each year. It must euthanize more than half of those animals primarily due to lack of space.

Even though the month is winding down, the deal is not over.

Quick Fix will pick up animals at the following locations next week: Alabaster Bruno’s, Feb. 23; Wilsonville Town Hall, Feb. 24; Calera Walmart, Feb. 25; Columbiana Piggly Wiggly, Feb. 26; and Chelsea Walmart, Feb. 27. All animals are picked up at 6:15 a.m. and returned between 5 and 5:30 p.m. the same day.

Three animal centers in Shelby County also act as Quick Fix Partner Clinics to provide a complimentary follow-up visit to surgery participants within 7 to 10 days of the surgery. Those centers include:

280 Animal Medical Center, 9689 Highway 55, Westover. Phone: 678-8253

Valley Central Animal Clinic, 8707 Helena Road, Pelham. Phone: 982-9810

Calera Animal Hospital, 9370 Highway 25, Calera. Phone: 668-2300

For more information on Spay Day USA, visit www.humanesociety.org/spayday. For more information on Quick Fix, contact Jessica Marable at 669-3916 ext. 26 or by e-mailing Jessica@shelbyhumane.org.