Will Zweigart, founder of Flatbush Cats, said he feels optimistic that Mamdani will be willing to listen and act on the pet affordability crisis where past city leaders were not.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thing<\/a> he did after being sworn in was go to a rent-controlled apartment building in Flatbush to talk to the residents about unaddressed issues,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is someone who wants to hear about unaddressed issues and wants to put the full force of the city into addressing them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Enforcing existing animal rights laws<\/p>\n The groups first want Mamdani to shore up the city\u2019s existing animal rights regulations, starting with a new head of the Mayor\u2019s Office of Animal Welfare. Multiple city agencies, like the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the NYPD, are responsible for managing animal-related laws and regulations, and the office was created to coordinate those efforts and assist the mayor.\u00a0<\/p>\n But as of fall 2024, the director of the Mayor\u2019s Office of Animal Welfare was also its only full-time staffer.\n<\/p>\n The new director should \u201cshare the mayor\u2019s vision,\u201d Zweigart said, and \u201cshouldn\u2019t be afraid to call out issues that need to be addressed.\u201d\u00a0 In 2024, animal activists and elected officials slammed the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene \u2014 which is responsible for funding most affordable spay\/neuter surgeries in the city and oversees the city\u2019s municipal shelters \u2014 for publicly telling<\/a> the City Council it did not need more funding for spay\/neuter, while privately expressing greater need.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis person needs to have the ability to speak up and push for common-sense policy changes, particularly with a mayor like this, who has said \u2018We are going to govern audaciously,\u2019\u201d Zweigart said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n With someone new in the lead, the platform says the city must do better to enforce existing laws regulating animal breeding, licensing and sterilization.\u00a0 Allie Taylor, founder of Voters for Animal Rights, said the DOHMH and the NYPD are \u201cchoosing not to prioritize\u201d those laws. Zweigart pointed to a 2024 City Council hearing where DOHMH revealed it had not issued any spay\/neuter violations that year, which he called a \u201cclear dereliction of duty.\u201d<\/p>\n And while the city banned \u201cbackyard breeding\u201d in 2024, VAR receives regular reports about residents breeding and selling animals out of their apartments.\n<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you report those to 311, you usually get an email back within a day that just says \u2018unfounded, case closed,\u2019\u201d Taylor said. \u201cIt\u2019s impossible to have investigated those cases in a day.\u201d<\/p>\n Funding affordable pet care<\/p>\n The rest of the platform is centered around city funding for affordable vet care and other resources \u2014 like a pet food pantry pilot program.<\/p>\n Vet care costs have skyrocketed<\/a> in the past decade, well outpacing inflation, and other pet-related costs are starting to catch up. The price of pet food has jumped 20% since 2022, CBS <\/a>reported last year. Owners who can\u2019t afford vet care or pet food can be more likely to surrender their pets to shelters, or, in dire situations, turn them out on the street.<\/p>\n In 2025, Animal Care Centers of NYC took in more than 16,000 animals, its reports show, including nearly 10,000 strays and 6,534 owner surrenders. Five years earlier, it had taken in just over 7,000 strays and 5,740 owner surrenders.<\/p>\n The policy platform calls for more city funding for spay\/neuter surgeries and low-cost vet clinics in every borough.<\/p>\n Last year, the Council allocated<\/a> $500,00 for a city-funded low-cost spay\/neuter pilot program at Flatbush Vet. Part of the aim of the program, Zweigart said at the time, was to figure out how the city can expand it across the city, either by opening new clinics or partnering with existing veterinary offices.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe need clinics like Flatbush Vet \u2026 all over the city,\u201d Zweigart said. \u201cAnd nonprofits right now, the way the government is funding services, they\u2019re not funding capital projects like this, and nonprofits don\u2019t have millions of dollars to stand up their own clinics in the Bronx and Queens. We really are going to ask the city to completely rethink the level of investment they have.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n City-funded pet food pantries would be something new for New York City, but the idea has already received broad support from the City Council. Last year, 35 Council members signed on to co-sponsor a bill<\/a> that would establish a 12 month pet food pantry pilot program, but the bill was not voted on before the end of the session.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we talk to human food pantries, they tell us the number one thing they get asked about from the clientele is, \u2018Are you going to have pet food? When are you going to have pet food?\u2019\u201d Taylor said. \u201cWe know the demand is there, and the infrastructure is also there \u2014 you have human food pantries all over the city \u2014 it\u2019s just a matter of providing the funding for pet supplies.\u201d<\/p>\n Many pet owners struggle to afford pet food during short periods while between jobs or dealing with a short-term financial setback, Zweigart said. Having access to a pet pantry for just a month or two can make a significant difference.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026 it is surrender prevention,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not just a feel-good thing, it\u2019s probably the cheapest and most efficient way to keep shelter overcrowding from being a persistent issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n![\"animal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/53991464287_0f2c095990_k.jpg\")
Animal welfare advocates in 2024 slammed the city\u2019s health department for publicly saying it did not need more funding, while privately expressing greater need. Photo courtesy of Gerardo Romo\/NYC Council Media Unit\n<\/p>\n
\n![\"stray](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/24-animal-lovers-feral-cat-colony-columbia-street-waterfront-2021-01-0804BC_CMYK.jpg\")
The city is responsible for ensuring that outdoor cats with owners are sterilized, per city laws. File photo by Kevin Duggan\n<\/p>\n![\"animal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/mm-Mill-Basin-adoption-event-2019-07-05-bk02BCPRINT_WEBWEB.jpg\")
Animal Care Centers of NYC has seen an increase in uptakes since 2020. File photo courtesy of NYC ACC<\/p>\n![\"cat](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2484.jpg\")
A veterinarian performs surgery at Flatbush Vet. File photo courtesy of Flatbush Cats<\/p>\n