The Hays County Commissioners Court proclaimed February 2022 as Spay/Neuter Awareness Month and urged all residents of Hays County to help control pet overpopulation. This proclamation coincides with World Spay Day, launched on February 22, 1995. World Spay Day is an annual campaign recognized in nearly 70 countries worldwide that aims to encourage people to save animal lives by spaying and neutering companion animals and community cats.
During this past Tuesday’s Commissioners Court meeting, court members voted unanimously to adopt the proclamation. The Court previously approved a ‘No Kill’ initiative by signing a resolution in 2018. The Commissioners Court also endorses spay and neuter of pets and the Trap-Neuter-Return method of free-roaming community cats.
Hays County Judge Becerra said, “We participate in World Spay Day to help increase awareness of the need for spay/neuter to save animal lives.”
He said that spaying and neutering pets will help reduce the number of animals impounded at the regional animal shelter in San Marcos, which has been at critical overcrowding capacity for many weeks. The regional animal shelter in San Marcos is the only open intake facility serving all Hays County residents and the county pays a portion of the operating costs.
Commissioner Debbie Ingalsbe, Pct. 1, and Commissioner Lon Shell, Pct. 3, have also endeavored over the past few years to raise awareness of shelter overcrowding and to support the no-kill initiative.
“We encourage all Hays County residents to continue helping to minimize the number of homeless cats and dogs impounded by the shelter each year by spaying/neutering their pets, sponsoring spays/neuters, and donating to local animal welfare organizations,” Ingalsbe said. “All of those things will help the shelter’s resources go much further.”
It is estimated that 88 percent of pets living in underserved communities are not spayed or neutered, leaving them open to reproducing and adding to the overpopulation problem.
Commissioner Shell said he advocates for responsible pet ownership and encourages the community to get their pets spayed and neutered to curb the number of pets which may become homeless, stray, or enter the regional animal shelter.
“By taking proactive steps within our community, we can aim to reduce the number of animals brought into the shelter,” he said. “Spaying and neutering is one of the most effective methods to reducing pet overpopulation in Hays County.”
San Marcos resident Kelly Arthur, a Hays County animal advocate, is the volunteer manager for Hays County Lost & Found Pets.
“We in the Lost & Found team see abandoned strays every day because pet owners cannot afford to fix their pets,” she said. “By providing pet owners with resources for low-cost spay/neuter we can keep the population of unwanted pets out of the animal shelter.”
According to Sharri Boyett, Animal Advocacy Advisor and Community Liaison of Hays County, a volunteer position appointed by the county judge, spaying and neutering are the keys to stopping the cycle of homeless and unwanted pet litters. During Tuesday’s court meeting, she reported that San Marcos Regional Animal Shelter impounded 4,059 animals in FY 2021, of which 31 percent (1,524 animals) were from the unincorporated areas of Hays County.
“The Hays County Spay/Neuter Awareness proclamation is educational,” she said. “It is an important way to draw our community’s attention to the serious issue of pet overpopulation. By bringing attention to these issues, we show we care about cats and dogs at risk of being homeless, abandoned, stray, and those impounded to the regional animal shelter.”
She added that people who want to keep their pets but don’t know about low-cost spay/neuter resources should visit the PALS website, Pet Prevent A Litter (PALS) of Central Texas.
“PALS provides low-cost and free spay/neuter surgeries to qualified Hays County residents,” she said.
Diane Welker, Vice Chair, Animal Shelter Advisory Committee, said, spaying and neutering of cats can drastically reduce the number of kittens who are taken to the shelter each year.
“Between the two organizations with whom I’m an active neonatal foster, we see an estimated 1,500-2,000 litters of kittens annually,” she said. “For each cat that is spayed we can prevent another 10-15 kittens in shelters, which will make a difference in the lives of all animals in Hays County.”
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