Texas Border Business
EDINBURG, Texas — Palm Valley Animal Society (PVAS) has been awarded funding through the Texas Spay and Neuter Program (TxSNP), a $13 million statewide initiative administered by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and backed by the 89th Texas Legislature.
PVAS was selected as one of 38 awardees from a competitive pool of 119 applicants statewide, chosen based on its demonstrated capacity to deliver high-volume, high-quality, low-cost veterinary services to the community.
The TxSNP program reimburses participating organizations on a fee-for-service basis: $300 per female canine spay, $250 per male canine neuter, $200 per female feline spay, and $125 per male feline neuter. These reimbursements will help offset the real costs of running a surgical program that relies on staff, supplies, medications, and the relief veterinarians who travel to PVAS to make each clinic possible. Without this support, offering affordable access to these services simply would not be sustainable.
Through the grant period, PVAS plans to perform approximately 588 canine and 523 feline sterilization surgeries, a meaningful commitment to reducing pet overpopulation in the region. Every surgery completed is reimbursed by the state, allowing PVAS to continue investing its own resources into the clinic infrastructure, animal care, and staffing that makes it all run.
“2026 is PVAS’s year. Between our facility expansion and now this, being able to bring affordable spay and neuter services to any family in the Rio Grande Valley, we are hitting our stride as an organization. This is what it looks like when our community invests in animals, and we don’t take that responsibility lightly,” said Suzette Cruz, Executive Director of Palm Valley Animal Society.
Spaying and neutering pets reduces the number of animals entering shelters, improves long-term pet health, and helps communities manage stray animal populations more effectively. For a region like the Rio Grande Valley, where PVAS serves multiple municipalities and cares for thousands of animals each year, this investment has a meaningful and lasting impact on families, pets, and the broader community.
PVAS serves the cities of McAllen, Edinburg, Palmhurst, and parts of unincorporated Hidalgo County. The organization is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that has provided animal services to South Texas since 1975. To learn more or schedule a spay/neuter appointment, visit pvastx.org/spayandneuter.
