\u201cOur overpopulation problem, I equate it to the snowball effect, where the more time that goes on, it just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger,\u201d Perea said during a Tuesday Fresno City Council budget hearing.<\/p>\n
Last month, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer presented his proposed $2.55 billion annual city budget<\/a> \u2014 the largest in the city\u2019s history. This proposal included $350,000 for sterilization services as part of the city\u2019s Fresno Animal Center Department $9.6 million budget<\/a>, which Dyer estimated would help sterilize about 1,800 animals.<\/p>\n But for some council members, this wasn\u2019t enough.<\/p>\n “I would like to see a bigger dent in it now,\u201d Perea said.<\/p>\n Councilmember Tyler Maxwell also suggested the savings from the unfilled veterinarian position, which totals about $150,000 to $180,000, be reallocated towards space and neuter services.<\/p>\n That still leaves about $500,000 needed to close the gap, which the city could secure thanks to outside help. A Sonoma County-based animal welfare nonprofit pledged to donate up to $500,000<\/a> for the city\u2019s spay and neuter services in the form of a matching grant. Perea said Tuesday her budget motion was contingent on this grant.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not immediately clear how many animals the city\u2019s shelter could service if the proposed $1 million makes it into the final budget.<\/p>\n Fresno Animal Center director Alma Torres said the department\u2019s veterinarian performs about 20 spay\/neuter operations daily, or about 80 per week.<\/p>\n When asked by Councilmember Miguel Arias whether $1 million would be sufficient to make a dent in the city\u2019s animal overpopulation problem, Torres said \u201ca million dollars is not enough\u201d because there are not enough veterinarians in the area.<\/p>\n The Fresno City Council votes on the motions on June 16.<\/a> The costs of the motions then have to be reconciled to keep the budget balanced \u2014 mandated by city law. A final vote on the budget is scheduled for June 23.<\/p>\n Nonprofit pledges to help Fresno<\/p>\n The city could receive financial help from the Dogwood Animal Rescue Project, an animal welfare nonprofit based in Sonoma County,<\/p>\n Cofounder Charlotte Pearce said in a letter submitted to the city<\/a> that the organization would match up to between $201,000 and $500,000 of the city\u2019s budget. One of the group\u2019s priorities is to reduce the dog and cat population in the Central Valley; to date, the group has spent $1,700,000 to help spay and neuter 25,000 animals in Fresno County, the letter said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only way to get ahead of the crisis is by continuing to offer more high volume affordable spay\/neuter in your county,\u201d Pearce said.<\/p>\n Dozens of residents who submitted public comments and spoke during the budget hearing<\/a>, also urged the city to invest more in preventative services.<\/p>\n Kyle Kirkland, owner of Club One Casino \u2014 and the Republican candidate for California\u2019s 21st Congressional District, where he\u2019s challenging longtime incumbent Jim Costa (D-Fresno) \u2014 called the Central Valley \u201cground zero\u201d for the animal population problem. He said his foundation, the Kirkland Foundation,<\/a> was able to help sterilize, socialize and adopt out about 4,000-5,000 cats on a $900,000 budget.<\/p>\n \u201cI think if you look at the cost-effectiveness of that, you need to consider that in your thinking about how to deliver services to the community,\u201d Kirkland said.<\/p>\n Torres said that of the approximately 10,000 animals taken in by the animal shelter last year, about 27% were euthanized. Another 3,000 were adopted out and spayed and neutered, while others were transferred to partner organizations.<\/p>\n \u201cA significant portion of them do come in sick or injured,\u201d Torres said. “We provide the ability for them to be fostered or adopted, (but) we don\u2019t necessarily have the ability to nurse them all back to full health. So we have to make tough decisions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Maxwell asked whether any significant steps have been taken to lower the euthanasia rate.<\/p>\n \u201cI think when this was sold to the public, it was sold as a temporary measure,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n For years, the Central California SPCA has provided animal control services for the city of Fresno. In 2022, the city ended its partnership with SPCA<\/a> in response to complaints from city officials that the price of the contract was too expensive for the quality of the services. The city opened its own shelter in June 2022.<\/p>\n But the transition has not been without challenges.<\/p>\n In 2023, the city shelter was advised that it was \u201cborderline committing animal neglect\u201d<\/a> due to its inability to care for the volume of animals coming in, City Manager Georgeanne White said. UC Davis experts advised the city that it needed to get its animal population under control and the city has since instituted a \u201cmanaged intake\u201d approach.<\/p>\n \u201cWe just simply cannot take every single animal in,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Torres said the city will receive a trailer in July to operate a mobile spay and neuter clinic; services will be available once staffing is finalized.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Fresno Bee<\/p>\n![\"Adoptable](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/FRS_Animalshelter_02.JPG\" "\\"FRS_Animalshelter_02.JPG\\"")
Adoptable dogs Ferdinand, left, and Augusta explore one of six play yards at the new Fresno Animal Center during a grand opening and ribbon cutting event at the facility near the airport on Tuesday, June 28, 2022. CRAIG KOHLRUSS ckohlruss@fresnobee.com <\/p>\n![\"Visitors](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/IMG_FRS_Animalshelter_01_3_1_QEP74VM7_L838775371.JPG\" "\\"IMG_FRS_Animalshelter_01_3_1_QEP74VM7_L838775371.JPG\\"")
Visitors get ready to tour the Fresno Animal Center during a grand opening and ribbon cutting event at the facility near the airport on Tuesday, June 28, 2022. CRAIG KOHLRUSS ckohlruss@fresnobee.com 27% euthanasia rate at Fresno city shelter<\/p>\n
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