Spay & Neuter Grant Program
The Spay & Neuter Grant Program is not currently accepting applications.
The FY27 grant application window is now closed. Information regarding the FY28 grant application window will be posted in December 2026, and the application window will open in January 2027.
About the Spay & Neuter Grant Program
This program does not provide funding directly to individuals.
If you are a pet owner seeking services for your dog or cat, please see a list of Free Spay & Neuter Services for Pet Owners
If you are seeking services for free-roaming cats, please see a list of Free Spay & Neuter Services for Feral Cats
About the Spay & Neuter Grants Program
The Spay and Neuter Grants Program was established through legislation in 2014, to reduce intake and euthanasia rates in Maryland's animal shelters.
We hope to accomplish this by providing competitive grants to local governments and non-profit animal welfare organizations. These organizations will then provide free spay and neuter services through an in-house clinic, by partnering with area veterinarians and clinics, or a combination of the two.
This is a supplemental grant opportunity and not intended to be the sole or primary source of funding for an organization. This Program does not provide funding for spay/neuter of shelter/rescue animals prior to placement.
Program funding
Funding for this program comes wholly from fees paid by the pet food industry. As mandated by 2013's Senate Bill 820, a fee is levied on all pet food companies that sell their product(s) in the state.
In the first year, companies paid $50.00/product. In 2014 the fee increased to $75.00/product; and in 2015, the fee increased to $100/product, where it is capped.
More information for pet food manufacturers can be found here.
Program history
Spay & Neuter Grants Program History
Established by Chapter 561, Senate Bill 820 and Chapter 562, House Bill 767 in the Maryland General Assembly's 2013 legislative session, this program was designed to reduce the number of cats and dogs surrendered to and euthanized in shelters across Maryland.
In the 2022 legislative session, the Spay and Neuter Grant Program was extended for a further 10 years, until September 30, 2032, by Chapter 92, Senate Bill 206.
The Maryland Spay and Neuter Grant Program was conceived and initiated by Maryland Votes for Animals (MVFA). Their first step was to meet with a powerful member of the Maryland General Assembly, Speaker of the House, Michael Busch, where they discussed the need for a state spay and neuter program and requested his support.
After drafting a white paper outlining the problem and solution, Maryland Votes for Animals—working with the Speaker’s staff—determined that the problem was too complex to design a program without a task force to study the issue and make recommendations. Having Speaker Busch’s support at the very beginning of the process was critical, and he was a strong supporter of the legislation when it was finally introduced.
The Spay and Neuter Task Force was created by an act of the Maryland General Assembly in 2011 (Chapter 266, Senate Bill 639) and signed into law by Governor Martin O’Malley.
With leadership provided by Del. Barbara Frush and Sen. Joanne Benson, and made up of representatives from Maryland animal control agencies, public and private animal shelters, spay/neuter groups, the Maryland Veterinary Medical Association, and the Maryland Department of Agriculture; the Task Force was charged to:
- Collect and review data on the number of spay/neuter services performed each year in the State, and the unmet need for the services;
- Review ongoing successful local spay/neuter programs in the State;
- Review spay/neuter programs in other states and identify best practices;
- Review and make recommendations regarding the most appropriate funding mechanism for a spay/neuter fund; and
- Make recommendations regarding the establishment of a spay/neuter fund that best meets the needs of the State.
Results of the Task Force’s Final Report (2012) confirmed the urgent need for a statewide spay/neuter program to reduce shelter intake and euthanasia rates in Maryland.
The Report indicated approximately half of the cats and a third of the dogs in Maryland’s shelter populations were euthanized for reasons other than owner-requested euthanasia.
The Report also found that the intake, housing, and euthanasia of these animals costs Maryland taxpayers millions of dollars, and a statewide spay/neuter program benefits animals in facilities across the state, Maryland taxpayers, and low-income pet owners.
With information gathered by the Task Force Final Report, Maryland Votes for Animals, together with legislators in Maryland, and other groups, developed and introduced Senate Bill 820 (SB820/HB767) to the Maryland General Assembly in the 2013 legislative session.
This bill called for the development of a Spay and Neuter Grants Program that would result in affordable spay and neuter services throughout the state and ultimately reduce shelter intake and euthanasia rates in Maryland. The bill also called for quarterly statistical reports from shelters run by county or municipal governments, or non-profit facilities providing animal control services on behalf of local jurisdictions, to track changes in intake and euthanasia rates as the Grant Program is underway.
Senate Bill 820 passed on April 4, 2013; and was signed into law by Governor Martin O’Malley on May 16, 2013.
To see more specifics of this bill, visit: General Assembly of Maryland - SB820 (CH0561)
To read the full Senate Bill, visit: Senate Bill 820 - PDF
In the 2022 legislative session, Governor Larry Hogan signed Senate Bill 206 into law, which extends the Spay and Neuter Grant Program for a further 10 years, until September 30, 2032.
As part of 2013's Senate Bill 820, the MD Secretary of Agriculture appointed a Spay and Neuter Advisory Board (SNAB), who helped to formulate the regulations and guidelines of the Program, and to provide annual grant funding recommendations to the Secretary.
The Regulations (.01 through .10, under the newly-created Chapter Code of Maryland [COMAR] 15.01.10 Spay/Neuter Grant Program) explain the requirements for the Spay and Neuter Grant Program, and that it was established to assist in the reduction of animal shelter cat and dog overpopulation and euthanasia rates, by financing grants to local governments and qualifying animal welfare organizations for programs, on a competitive basis, that will effectively facilitate and promote spay and neuter services for cats and dogs. The Regulations were adopted June 23, 2014.
Apply for a grant
There are two competitive grant opportunities offered annually, one for pet dogs and cats of low income Marylanders, and one for unowned/feral cats. The grant window typically opens in early January and closes in early April, and eligible organizations and agencies are encouraged to apply.