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Bay Area veterinarians will partner with the Fresno Animal Center this week to conduct day-long spay and neuter services for pets in Fresno, aiming to help address overcrowding conditions at local animal shelters.

Veterinarians from the San Francisco SPCS will partner with the Fresno Animal Center on Thursday and Friday.

This event offers spay and neuter services to applicants already on the list that focuses initially on low-income residents. Future events are planned but dates are yet to be finalized for future events.

The procedures are funded by a grant from California for All Animals, a funding initiative through UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program that supports animal shelters throughout the state to provide care for vulnerable pets.

The San Francisco SPCA has partnered with the Fresno Animal Shelter previously, providing resources and other in-house assistance, but this is the first spay and neuter event hosted by the two organizations.

The event aims to address the backlog of spay and neuter operations for pets already at the center. The center hopes to eventually host a public spay and neuter event in the future according to a City of Fresno spokesperson.

“Spay and neuter services are critical to helping control the local animal population, which can help shelters focus on what they do best—providing compassionate care to our most vulnerable pets,” said Dr. Jennifer Scarlett, CEO of the San Francisco SPCA. “We are proud to work once again with our partners in the Central Valley to address this issue and raise awareness about the seriousness of shelter overcrowding in California.”

As of Wednesday, the center is housing 143 dogs as well as 20 cats that are ready for adoption.

Following the spay and neuter event, the Fresno Animal Center will also host a free pet adoption event on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in an effort to reduce the number of adoptable pets currently at the shelter.

Currently, California is suffering a shortage of veterinary professionals, leaving many California areas without veterinary care. The lack of veterinary care has led to an increase in animals brought into shelters in recent years.

The Central Valley has some of the lowest veterinary accessibility in the country, specifically Fresno, which leads the state in animal intake per capita.

“While we face real challenges in Fresno, we also have dedicated and compassionate community members and partners who are ready to help,” said Alma Torres, Interim Director of the Fresno Animal Center. “Thank you to our partners at the San Francisco SPCA whose support helps make this work possible.”