This holiday season you may have been thinking of pet gifts like litter boxes, monogrammed collars and leashes.

The Selma Animal Shelter hopes you are still in that holiday spirit by making donations to help it spay and neuter the cats and dogs it houses.

Sherry Marter, board member for the Central Alabama Animal Shelter Board, said Selma and Dallas County has an overabundance of domestic animal problems, and the key is spaying and neutering.

“Neutering and spaying a cat or dog controls the pet population,” Marter said. “It stops behavior problems like aggression and roaming, reduces the risk of infection and cancers and brings better health to your cat or dog.”

The shelter takes in more than 50 animals a week and has partnered with the city of Selma to create the “Spay and Neuter Fund,” which kicked off this summer. Twenty percent of the shelter’s regular donations also go toward the fund.

“We raised more than $400 with the help of the community and the radio station WALX,” Marter said. “People were really kind in their donations, and we hope the money continues to come. It would be wonderful to see every single dog and cat (in here) fixed and adopted. Neutering is good for you, your pet and the community overall.”

Anthony Smith, who has been a caretaker for four years at the shelter, provides daily baths, shots and recreation for the nearly 130 dogs and cats at the shelter.

He said it is love for animals that brings him to work every day.

“I don’t like to see animals starving,” Smith said. “I like to help these animals and that’s why I’m here.”

Under Alabama law, all animals must be spayed and neutered and the Selma Animal Shelter is trying to make the law a reality.

“We just didn’t have the funds before to make it happen,” Marter said. “We’ve got to do this because it’s just better for the community.”

Canines and felines don’t get spayed or neutered until they are adopted, but so far the shelter has been making progress.

“We have an average of about 22 adoptions a month and that’s pretty good for a city of our size,” Marter said.

The shelter provides Felovax, a vaccination to prevent Leukemia, for cats and Da2ppv, a shot that prevents parvo, a highly contagious disease that causes intestinal bleeding, severe vomiting, respiratory problems and diarrhea, for dogs. In addition, veterinarians perform “wellness checks” on the animals to check for heartworms and other diseases.

Marter suggests the community help by giving donations and by adoption.

“We’re here to find homes for animals and strays,” Marter said. “Whether a person owns an animal or not, he or she does not have to be afraid to relinquish control of their pets or to adopt. We have three great veterinarians here to help in case of questions.”

The cost to adopt a cat is $50, while the adoption fee for a dog is $60.

The Selma Animal Shelter is open from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and closed on weekends.

For more information call 877-2204.