Two programs offered by the Loudoun County Department of Animal Care and Control during the month of June will help reduce cat overpopulation by allowing 384 cats to receive free spay/neuter surgery.

In honor of Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat month all cats adopted from the Loudoun County Animal Shelter during the month of June received free spay/neuter surgery. As a result, cat adoptions increased 31% over June of last year. In total, 71 cats & kittens were adopted into loving homes.

In addition, Animal Care & Control partnered with 10 local veterinarians to offer free cat spay/neuter vouchers for Loudoun County residents. Vouchers were available at the Loudoun County Animal Shelter throughout the month of June and are redeemable at the veterinarian of the owner's choosing until August 1.

The Animal Shelter distributed 313 vouchers total in the month of June.

"The Virginia General Assembly recently passed a resolution encouraging local governments to support the spaying and neutering of companion animals by providing incentives to local citizens (HJ 768)," said Operations Manager Tom Koenig. "These programs are the first step in our commitment to bringing this resolution to our community and we are very pleased with the results."

Funding for these programs came through sales of the Virginia Animal Friendly license plate. As a revenue sharing plate, a $15 non-tax-deductible contribution is made to the locality in which the vehicle is registered.

Animal Care & Control is working on plans for similar spay/neuter programs for dogs during Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog month in October.