Our Work in Puerto Rico
November 6, 2025
PETA Latino Breaks Record at Puerto Rico Spay/Neuter Event
Forget a spot on the beach—Puerto Rico’s hottest ticket is a date with PETA Latino’s mobile clinic!
PETA Latino’s recent spay/neuter and vaccination clinic was its most successful yet, sterilizing and vaccinating a whopping 258 animals in just 2 days. Since the sterilization slots filled up in minutes, some clients arrived in the wee hours of the morning to hold their spot in line and guarantee that their beloved companion animals could get snipped.
When the team needed a last-minute veterinarian, Dr. Adriana Luna, a passionate animal rescuer and adoption advocate, stepped in to help. She was thrilled to join PETA Latino’s efforts and help contribute to this massively successful spay/neuter clinic.
Why Spay/Neuter Events Are Vital in Puerto Rico and Around the World
Puerto Rico has a large homeless animal population, with estimates of 500,000 to 650,000 stray dogs and over a million stray cats. Many people who attended the clinic relayed stories about constantly seeing satos (stray dogs) get hit by cars, and gatos (cats) deceased on the side of the road.
There are many factors that lead to homeless animal overpopulation in Puerto Rico, including:
- limited spay/neuter services
- economic hardship
- a lack of animal control
- natural disasters like Hurricane Maria and the 2020 earthquake
That’s why PETA Latino and other organizations dedicate resources to spay/neuter and adoption initiatives on the island. Every animal sterilized at PETA Latino’s spay/neuter clinic prevents the birth of dozens of new homeless animals.
You Can Help Make a Difference: Support the Global Compassion Fund
Unlike humans, dogs and cats can’t do their own family planning. It’s up to their guardians to have them spayed or neutered to help curb the companion animal overpopulation crisis. Funding for temporary sterilization clinics, like this one in Puerto Rico, helps reduce the suffering of animals for generations, as fewer unsterilized dogs and cats mean fewer animals born into communities that don’t have the resources to care for them. You can help change the lives of countless animals by supporting PETA’s Global Compassion Fund today: