See Our Impact in Action
Read the United Spay Alliance 2024 Annual Report to see how we’re expanding access to affordable spay/neuter nationwide.
Our Impact
United Spay Alliance
United Spay Alliance (USA) is a national nonprofit 501(c)3 animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to promoting affordable, accessible, and timely spay/neuter services as the solution to the crisis of cat and dog homelessness.
Spay/neuter. It’s public health for pets.
OUR GOALS:
- Increase access to affordable spay/neuter services
- Promote best practices for spay/neuter, including the optimal age to spay/neuter cats and eliminate “kitten season” once and for all (Feline Fix by Five)
- Provide collaboration and networking opportunities for leaders within the spay/neuter movement, including individual advocates, animal welfare organizations, and veterinary professionals
- Inspire and empower anyone with a passion for spay/neuter to take action in their own communities
OUR WORK:
Spay/Neuter Referral Directory
USA maintains a national database of resources to help anyone easily find the spay/neuter help they need. The directory is the most frequently visited page on our website, with over 3,000 users each month.
Search our nationwide directory here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/state-local/program-locator-map/
State Leader Network
USA fosters relationships with grassroots advocates, cultivating a list of State Leaders who are
ready to help families find low-cost services in their communities. Currently, USA has active State Leaders in 40 states, and is working continuously to find the right stakeholders to support the remaining states.
Learn more about our State Leader Network at: State Leader Network – United Spay Alliance
Feline Fix by Five
USA advocates for Feline Fix by Five, encouraging veterinarians to talk with their clients about the best
time to spay/neuter kittens – before five months. By providing research and resources, we aim to prompt more veterinarians to reconsider the conventional practice of spaying/neutering at six months or later. By acting before the five-month mark, we can prevent the birth of unwanted kittens, keep more cats in homes and alleviate the strain on shelters and rescues nationwide, which often find themselves overwhelmed by the influx of kittens.
Get more information about Feline Fix by Five here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/feline-fix-by-five/
HQHVSN Wet Labs
USA facilitates wet labs to provide hands-on training to veterinarians interested in learning high-
quality, high-volume spay/neuter (HQHVSN) techniques. Our goal is to establish a replicable model that can be adopted by communities nationwide, empowering more veterinarians to participate in HQHVSN initiatives within their regions.
Since the launch of this program in late 2022, wet labs have provided training to 21 veterinarians in 3 states. A wet lab with MSPCA-Angell in Boston, MA is scheduled for June 8, 2024 and will provide training to 4 more veterinarians.
Learn more about the HQHVSN wet lab program here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/hqhvsn-wet-labs/
Community Cats Grants Program
USA administers the Community Cats Grants program, aimed at helping small, grassroot nonprofits build organizational and fundraising capacity, and provide critical support for spay/neuter services. Started in 2017, the Community Cats Grants program was previously administered by our sister organization, the Community Cats Podcast. Administration of the program transferred to United Spay Alliance at the start of 2024. To date, the grants program has supported 275 groups and awarded over $320,321 to support spay/neuter surgeries for community cats.
Learn more about the Community Cats Grants program here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/community-cat-grants/
Veterinary Shortage Task Force
Research published in 2022 found an estimated backlog of 2.7 million spay/neuter surgeries nationwide, due to the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Compounded with the ongoing shortage of veterinary professionals to fill open positions, and the rising cost of veterinary care, there are limited options for pet parents and animal rescues alike in need of affordable spay/neuter services.
In response, USA put together the Veterinary Shortage Task Force (VSTF), an ad-hoc working group with the goal of understanding the complex challenges facing the veterinary community and developing meaningful solutions and workarounds to increase access to affordable spay/neuter services. The task force currently has 15 members, including veterinarians, shelter directors, policy experts, professors, and more, representing the diversity and complexity of this issue within the animal welfare space.
Keep up with the latest news and information from the VSTF here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/vet-shortage/
United Spay Alliance Online Conference
USA hosts the annual United Spay Alliance Online Conference to share key information from the spay/neuter movement, designed to inspire and empower anyone to take action to increase access to
affordable spay/neuter services in their communities. The conference began in 2020, and has had over 875 folks register since its inaugural year.
Learn more about the annual conference here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/united-spay-alliance-online-conference/
United We Spay, a podcast from United Spay Alliance
USA produces a monthly podcast, United We Spay, featuring key voices and stories from leaders
throughout the spay/neuter movement, to help inspire and empower those who are actively working to make an impact in their communities. With its premier episode released in December 2023, United We Spay has released five episodes and has over 345 all-time downloads.
Catch up on the latest episodes of United We Spay here: https://www.unitedspayalliance.org/podcast/
