Aiken County, SC Animal Ordinances: Mandatory Spay/Neuter (2026)

Aiken County Code of Ordinances Sec. " The adopter, not the county, bears the cost of the sterilization surgery and the microchip implanting and registration, and that fee is set by county council rather than written into the code as a fixed dollar figure. The section carves out one timing exception: if the animal is under six months old at the time of adoption, the shelter may release it unsterilized, but the adopting owner must then return the animal to the shelter before it turns six months old to complete sterilization, or have the procedure done earlier by a veterinarian of the adopter's own choosing and submit a written statement from that veterinarian confirming it was performed.

The code is explicit that the adoption fee is identical either way: there is no discount for the deferred option and no added shelter charge later for animals that come back for surgery. This is a shelter-adoption condition, not a county-wide spay and neuter mandate. Owners who acquire a pet outside the shelter, through a breeder, private sale, or a litter born on their own property, are not covered by Sec. 4-21(c). Adoption and impoundment processing generally is handled by Aiken County Animal Control under Sec.

4-21(a)-(b), which also sets minimum hold periods of five days for unidentified animals and fourteen days for animals bearing an ID tag, microchip, or tattoo before an unclaimed animal may be placed for adoption or euthanized.