Carmel High students urge county funding for affordable spay-and-neuter clinics

Three Carmel High students addressed the Monterey County Board of Supervisors during general public comment to urge county funding and support for affordable spay-and-neuter clinics to address animal overpopulation.

"We can't rescue our way out of this problem," said Matt David, identified as a Carmel High student ambassador for the Spay & Neuter Imperative Project of Monterey County. He told the board volunteers and clinic organizers had helped fix more than 1,000 cats in the county over the past year and asked supervisors to consider allocating funds for clinics.

Eli David, also a student ambassador and a recent alumnus of the county's Young Supervisors program, described the exponential reproduction risk from unfixed animals and said investment in clinics reduces future shelter intake and long-term costs. "If one unfixed female dog and her puppies reproduce over six years, they can create tens of thousands of animals," Eli said, using the example offered to underscore the scale of the problem.

Julia, a founding member of a school club focused on animal welfare, urged the county to consider a mandatory spay-and-neuter ordinance for Monterey County and pointed to Seaside's monthly subsidized clinic and ordinance as a model that produced a measurable decline in stray animals.

Supervisors thanked the students for their presentation; Supervisor Church and others noted the students' participation in the Young Supervisors program. The board did not vote on any funding request during the meeting; the students asked the board to consider allocating funds in future budgets.