Wicomico County, MD Animal Ordinances: Mandatory Spay/Neuter (2026)

Wicomico County's animal control chapter lets an Animal Control Officer impound any animal running at large, and Section 133-16 sets the redemption terms: an animal wearing a current rabies tag or carrying a microchip must be held at least six business days and cannot be euthanized within 10 business days of impoundment. Section 133-17 layers a sterilization consequence on top of that redemption process. If a dog or cat belonging to the same owner, and which has never been spayed or neutered, is impounded a second time inside a 12-month window, the county will not simply release it back to the owner on payment of boarding fees the way a first impoundment works.

Instead the animal becomes the property of the Animal Control Authority outright, unless the owner arranges and pays for the Authority to spay or neuter the animal within one week after being notified. There is no appeal built into Section 133-17 itself for this outcome; the county's general redemption conditions in Section 133-16, including proof of ownership and payment of board and care costs, still apply on top of the sterilization requirement. The rule sits in Article VI, Impoundment, Confinement and Euthanization, alongside the county's separate authority to euthanize animals that cannot be captured or that show signs of rabies, mange or other dangerous disease. G kicks in before the animal can be redeemed at all.