New York City will now offer free pet food across 22 existing city-funded food pantries throughout the five boroughs in collaboration with the Mayor’s Office of Animal Welfare and the NYC Department of Social Services.
The introduction of the program on Oct. 19 follows a recent $500,000 expansion of the Community Food Connection program and will provide free dog and cat food for New Yorkers.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the expansion of the CFC program in a statement from the Mayor’s Office.
“The affordability crisis affects every member of a family, including the pets we love. No New Yorker should have to choose between feeding themselves and feeding their pets. Keeping families together means keeping pets at home, too,” he said.
The new city-funded pet food bank program aims to ease the financial burden endured by families who struggle to afford necessities for themselves and their pets given the rising cost of living. It also works to help families avoid having to make the difficult decision to surrender their beloved pets to animal shelters.
According to a 2025 interview with the Gothamist, Animal Care Centers of NYC shared that roughly one in three pets are surrendered to an animal shelter due to housing insecurity, statistically coinciding with food insecurity.
The ever-rising inflation in basic pet care, which spans from commercial pet food to routine veterinary care, has placed an unprecedented burden on lower income households throughout the city.
Jose Santos, a 60-year-old man, detailed his experience struggling to provide for both him and his beloved 8-year-old German shepherd, Grace.
“If I have to go hungry, I’ll go hungry so she can eat. I’ll do that. I sacrifice. She’s worth it,” Santos told the Gothamist.
Santos later detailed that he must save and allocate money each month to guarantee that he can afford Grace’s shots, with her last vet bill totaling to $211.
“For many of us, a pet isn’t a luxury. It’s family. And when budgets get tight, we know people will skip their own meals before they let their animals go hungry, or worse, pressured to give them up,” Erin Dalton, Department of Social Services Commissioner, said in an official statement.
The 22 participating pantries with pet food banks are distributed across four locations in the Bronx, four locations in Queens, six
locations in Brooklyn, six locations in Manhattan and two locations in Staten Island, allowing the program to reach residents across the city.
By embedding pet food banks into already existing food bank infrastructures, NYC officials hope to remove some of the stigma and economic hurdles many face when attempting to receive pet assistance through other alleys.
To access pet food assistance, NYC residents can visit any of the participating CFC food pantries during regular operating hours. Standard food distribution includes dry food, such as kibble, and canned wet food tailored towards both cats and dogs alike, brands include Purina, 9Lives, Gravy Train and Cat Café.
Community members interested in finding the nearest participating food pantry or learning about other pet support services can check the NYC Department of Social Services’ interactive map or contact 311 for local pantry schedules.
