Sampson County, NC Animal Ordinances: Mandatory Spay/Neuter (2026)

Sampson County's spay-and-neuter rule under § 4-1-02.M is narrower than a blanket mandate: it applies only to dogs and cats leaving the county Animal Shelter through adoption, not to every pet already living in a household in the unincorporated county. Before an animal goes home with a new owner, it must already be surgically spayed or neutered, or the adopter has to agree in writing to have that surgery performed within whatever time limit the Animal Shelter Director sets for the individual animal. The Animal Shelter Director is responsible for writing and running the enforcement procedures that make sure adopters actually follow through, which typically means tracking the adoption paperwork and the veterinary deadline the adopter agreed to.

If an adopter fails to comply with the spay or neuter condition, § 4-1-02.M(c) treats that failure itself as a violation of the section, and the consequence is not just a fine: the animal is forfeited back to the Sampson County Sheriff's Office or the Sampson County Animal Shelter. That is separate from, and in addition to, the county's requirement elsewhere in Chapter 4-1 that any adopted dog or cat four months or older be vaccinated against rabies before or shortly after adoption. Because § 4-1-02.M lives inside the general Animal Control ordinance, an adopter who also ignores other adoption conditions can face the chapter's standard civil penalty schedule administered by the Sheriff's Office, on top of losing the animal.