The municipality of San José, Costa Rica recently announced a program to castrate and deworm as many stray dogs and cats as possible. This is in an effort to prevent the spread of diseases and to reduce the number of homeless dogs and cats in the metropolitan area. The local counterpart of the SPCA called la Asociación Nacional Protectora de Animales (ANPA) will also help with this project.

On my popular monthly relocation and retirement tours I am always asked questions about pets in Costa Rica. I make it a point to tell my guests that I know a lot about the subject since I am a dog lover.

Presently, I have two black male Labs. They a really good dogs and I try to take the possible possible care of them. Veterinarians are excellent and charge a fraction of what their counterparts do in the States. They are also easy to find here in the Central Valley. Almost every neighborhood has one.

You can also find your your favorite dog and cat here. We have everything from Purina to Science Diet. The are even a few large pet stores that are similar to the U.S. Chain Pat Co.

By the way, it is not necessary to bring your pet from home since there are several places where retirees can adopt dogs and cats here.