07/28/2025
Pittsburgh friends- please read, email, and share!
📢 Pittsburgh, we need your voice! Demand action on the City’s Spay/Neuter Program!
Back in February 2024, Pittsburgh suspended its free spay/neuter program, a vital tool in controlling the population of stray and community cats. The reason? Alleged misuse by non-city residents and baseless claims that small rescues were “profiting.” (Spoiler alert: no one is profiting from rescue work, we’re barely keeping up.)
In the fall of last year, our founder and 13 other cat advocates spoke at the City Council meeting regarding the current crisis in the City of Pittsburgh. After immense pressure, the city reinstated the program, but only in a limited capacity and only for feral cats. However, now 10 months after our pleas, the program is still not accepting new applications, and independent rescuers and everyday residents are still being left out.
Let’s be clear. Rescue organizations are overwhelmed. Our intakes are up 47% compared to this time last year. And adoptions are only up 25%. This is not sustainable.
City Council could make a real difference. But instead, we’re getting the runaround. While the city talks about new contracts and reviews, cats and dogs are multiplying, rescues and shelters are drowning, and residents are out of options.
We’ve done everything we can behind the scenes. Now we need the public outcry. If they won’t listen to the people doing the work, maybe they’ll listen to YOU.
EMAIL LEE SCHMIDT, Director of Public Safety.

Demand answers. Demand accountability. Demand the reinstatement and expansion of the free spay/neuter program.
Email: [email protected]
Sample message available upon request.
Together, we can’t adopt our way out of this. But we CAN speak up. And we NEED to, before it’s too late.