Residents of York County are facing a pet overpopulation crisis with a surge of stray cats and dogs overwhelming the community, according to the county’s animal services director.
At the York County Council meeting on July 15, community members talked about how to reduce the number of stray animals.
“The aftermath of COVID-19 has led to an influx of unwanted animals being dumped at shelters, with dogs and kittens born with nowhere to go,” said Alicia Schwartz of Project Safe Pet, a nonprofit. “A larger shelter would be beneficial, but it’s not a complete solution.”
According to the York County Animal Services website, the department operates a shelter for animals involved in cruelty cases or law enforcement investigations, those picked up as strays, and animals surrendered by their owners. Animals in violation of the leash law are held for a minimum of five days before being evaluated and placed.
According to the York County Animal Services Facebook page, 974 animals entered the shelter this past quarter.
The shelter, which has 72 dog kennels and 97 cat kennels, is currently housing 115 dogs and 151 cats, according to Bobbie Comer, director of animal services.
“The shelter was built 20 years ago; the city has grown, but the shelter has not,” Comer said. “Our goal is life-saving, but we are facing a space issue.”
Local nonprofits have relied heavily on the county’s Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program, initiated in 2019, which neuters and returns cats to their original locations. This program is on hold because the county needs to hire a new veterinarian.
“It stabilizes the population,” Comer said. “Before the program, cats were euthanized, which didn’t address the problem.”
Tips and Tails, a small nonprofit led by President Kellie McLaughlin and volunteer Claudia Dib, focuses on reducing stray and feral cat populations through TNR and fostering adoptable cats.
“The biggest struggle is finding affordable spay and neuter services in the area,” McLaughlin said. “We depended heavily on the TNR program.”
“We have more resources for spaying and neutering than the surrounding counties with two Spay Neuter Clinics and the Spay Neuter Coalition,” Dib said. “ These places spay and neuter animals for free without any criteria, So there is no excuse.”
Need information on spay and neuter services?
There will be a TNR day on Aug. 5 sponsored by York County Animal Services. This day is for feral cats only, according to the Facebook post, and dropoff will be from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
For low-cost spay and neuter for family pets, visit:
Snipwell Spay Neuter Clinic (located on Highway 21 in Fort Mill) 803-228-4208
Healthy Pets Spay Neuter Clinic (located on Riverview Rd. in Rock Hill) 803-327-7387
