Delaware News

Office of Animal Welfare Sponsors Spay Days to Help Eligible Pet Owners Show Love This February

Delaware Health and Social Services | Division of Public Health | Newsroom | Date Posted: Friday, February 7, 2025


A happy brown dog with a black snout wears a clear plastic cone (Elizabethan collar) around its neck. The dog is looking directly at the camera with bright eyes and an open-mouthed smile. A colorful blanket with blue, green, yellow, and orange hues is in the background.

February is Spay and Neuter Awareness Month, and the Delaware Division of Public Health’s Office of Animal Welfare (OAW) is proud to sponsor Spay Days, a special opportunity for income-eligible Delaware residents to have their pets spayed or neutered at no cost. As an added benefit, the program also covers microchipping, rabies, and distemper vaccinations to help ensure pets live healthier, safer lives.

Through this initiative, qualifying pet owners can schedule appointments at participating veterinary clinics, including Humane Animal Partners, Faithful Friends Animal Society, Forgotten Cats, and Brandywine Valley SPCA. The Spay & Neuter Program (SNP), established by the Delaware General Assembly in 2006 to reduce the number of stray and unwanted cats and dogs, provides spay/neuter funding to:

  • Low-income Delaware pet owners.
  • Homeless animals taken in by shelters and rescues.
  • Community cats sterilized through Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) programs*.

*Nonprofit animal welfare organizations may also apply for grants to help sterilize homeless Delaware animals, with a priority on community cats.

Spaying and neutering are nationally recognized as the most effective, humane method of controlling unwanted pet populations. When the Office of Animal Welfare (OAW) was established in 2013, one of its key responsibilities was to manage the SNP. Between 2014 and June 2024, the program made possible the sterilization of more than 40,000 animals and the vaccination of over 31,000 animals against rabies.

“Spay/neuter services are essential for improving the well-being of pets and preventing unwanted litters,” said Joanna Miller, deputy director of OAW. “We encourage eligible pet owners to take advantage of this program and show their pets some extra love this month.”

Appointments are limited, so eligible pet owners are encouraged to schedule as soon as possible. For more information about Spay Days, including eligibility requirements and how to make an appointment, visit https://fixedandfab.com/web/index#home.

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Office of Animal Welfare Sponsors Spay Days to Help Eligible Pet Owners Show Love This February

Delaware Health and Social Services | Division of Public Health | Newsroom | Date Posted: Friday, February 7, 2025


A happy brown dog with a black snout wears a clear plastic cone (Elizabethan collar) around its neck. The dog is looking directly at the camera with bright eyes and an open-mouthed smile. A colorful blanket with blue, green, yellow, and orange hues is in the background.

February is Spay and Neuter Awareness Month, and the Delaware Division of Public Health’s Office of Animal Welfare (OAW) is proud to sponsor Spay Days, a special opportunity for income-eligible Delaware residents to have their pets spayed or neutered at no cost. As an added benefit, the program also covers microchipping, rabies, and distemper vaccinations to help ensure pets live healthier, safer lives.

Through this initiative, qualifying pet owners can schedule appointments at participating veterinary clinics, including Humane Animal Partners, Faithful Friends Animal Society, Forgotten Cats, and Brandywine Valley SPCA. The Spay & Neuter Program (SNP), established by the Delaware General Assembly in 2006 to reduce the number of stray and unwanted cats and dogs, provides spay/neuter funding to:

  • Low-income Delaware pet owners.
  • Homeless animals taken in by shelters and rescues.
  • Community cats sterilized through Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) programs*.

*Nonprofit animal welfare organizations may also apply for grants to help sterilize homeless Delaware animals, with a priority on community cats.

Spaying and neutering are nationally recognized as the most effective, humane method of controlling unwanted pet populations. When the Office of Animal Welfare (OAW) was established in 2013, one of its key responsibilities was to manage the SNP. Between 2014 and June 2024, the program made possible the sterilization of more than 40,000 animals and the vaccination of over 31,000 animals against rabies.

“Spay/neuter services are essential for improving the well-being of pets and preventing unwanted litters,” said Joanna Miller, deputy director of OAW. “We encourage eligible pet owners to take advantage of this program and show their pets some extra love this month.”

Appointments are limited, so eligible pet owners are encouraged to schedule as soon as possible. For more information about Spay Days, including eligibility requirements and how to make an appointment, visit https://fixedandfab.com/web/index#home.

image_printPrint

Graphic that represents delaware news on a mobile phone

Keep up to date by receiving a daily digest email, around noon, of current news release posts from state agencies on news.delaware.gov.

Here you can subscribe to future news updates.