How the free pet food program works

On October 15, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the City Council, the Mayor’s Office of Animal Welfare and the Department of Social Services announced that existing city-funded food pantries would begin distributing free food for cats and dogs on October 19. These are community food pantries, not a new chain of pet stores or veterinary clinics.

The city allocated $500,000 to make pet food available at 22 locations, alongside broader funding for human food assistance. The announcement did not give a standard bag size, guaranteed brand or universally applicable pickup schedule. Do not assume inventory is unlimited, or that every pantry offers the same food on every day.

Bronx: four participating pet food pantries

The city lists four Bronx locations serving different parts of the borough. Check each provider’s current distribution days, registration instructions and food availability directly. A posted address confirms participation in the announced program, not that walk-in pet food is always in stock.

• Part of the Solution — 2759 Webster Avenue, Bronx, NY 10458.
• New York Common Pantry — 1290 Hoe Avenue, Bronx, NY 10459.
• Davidson Community Center — 2038 Davidson Avenue, Bronx, NY 10453.
• Kingsbridge Heights Community Center — 3067 Kingsbridge Terrace, Bronx, NY 10463.

Queens: four participating pet food pantries

The city’s source prints the Yeshua location as “7911 Caldwell .Ave.” We have normalized the street-number formatting for readability, but visitors should verify the precise address with the provider before setting off. The four sites are spread across Queens rather than concentrated in one neighborhood.

• First United Methodist Church of Jamaica — 162-10 Highland Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11432.
• River Fund — 89-11 Lefferts Boulevard, Richmond Hill, NY 11418.
• Yeshua Worldwide Ministries Food Pantry — 79-11 Caldwell Avenue, Middle Village, NY 11379.
• Hour Children Community Outreach — 36-49 11th Street, Long Island City, NY 11106.

Brooklyn: six participating pet food pantries

Brooklyn has six locations in the October 15 list. Two are on Fulton Street but at different street numbers; they are separate pantries. Check the specific organization and address, and do not assume that a food pantry’s general opening hours match its pet food distribution times.

• Community Help in Park Slope — 200 Fourth Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217.
• Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty — 5361 Preston Court, Brooklyn, NY 11234.
• On the Go Relief — 2832 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11207.
• St. John’s Bread and Life Food Pantry — 795 Lexington Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11221.
• The Campaign Against Hunger — 2004 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11233.
• YMCA Community Market — 2980 West 29th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11224.

Manhattan: six participating pet food pantries

The announced Manhattan sites include Chelsea, East Harlem, Midtown West and several East Village/Lower East Side addresses. If one location cannot provide the type of cat or dog food you need, ask about availability rather than assuming another listed pantry stocks an identical product.

• Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen Pantry — 296 Ninth Avenue, New York, NY 10001.
• New York Common Pantry — 8 East 109th Street, New York, NY 10029.
• St. Clemens Food Pantry — 423 West 46th Street, New York, NY 10036.
• The Father’s Heart Ministries — 543–545 East 11th Street, New York, NY 10009.
• The Lower Eastside Girls Club — 402 East 8th Street, New York, NY 10009.
• Trinity’s Services and Food for the Homeless — 602 East 9th Street, New York, NY 10009.

Staten Island: two participating pet food pantries

Both Staten Island addresses appear in the Stapleton area. Check current pickup eligibility and distribution hours before making a long cross-borough journey. Citywide program participation does not mean that every food pantry on Staten Island distributes pet food.

• Project Hospitality — 205 Canal Street, Staten Island, NY 10304.
• Feeding with TLC — 309 St. Paul’s Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10304.

Do you need to register? Can anyone collect food?

The October 15 release does not establish a single citywide set of ID, registration, pet ownership or income-verification requirements for these 22 sites. Some food pantries operate scheduled appointments, neighborhood-based service areas or intake procedures, so individual rules should be confirmed with the provider.

When calling, ask whether cat or dog food is available that week, whether a prior pantry registration is necessary, what to bring, whether pickup is possible without an appointment, and whether there is a limit per household. These are questions to ask—not requirements that we are claiming every provider imposes.

What if you need food for a particular pet?

The program is announced for both dogs and cats, but the city did not publish a reliable pantry-by-pantry inventory of brands, package sizes or veterinary diets. If an animal needs prescription or medically specialized food, ask the provider or your veterinarian about suitable support rather than switching diets without advice.

Pet food is not the same as veterinary care, spay/neuter services or pet shelter assistance. The city separately references broader animal-welfare investment, but those services should not be assumed to be available at the listed pantry addresses.

What to check before you visit

• Choose the nearest of the 22 locations from the official borough list.
• Contact the pantry to confirm it is currently distributing cat or dog food and has supply.
• Ask about distribution times, registration, household limits and accessibility.
• Bring a reusable bag or cart if the provider recommends one, and plan for the size of the package available.
• If the pantry cannot help, ask whether it can refer you to a nearby participating food pantry.
• For broader food assistance, use NYC’s official food resource information or 311.

Where the funding comes from

The city says it allocated $500,000 specifically for pet food. It also reports $78 million for FY 2027 food distribution through its Community Food Connection program, which supports more than 700 food pantries. The broader network size should not be confused with the smaller 22-site pet food rollout.

This page is an editorial directory based on the addresses published in the city’s October 15 announcement. Availability and eligibility can change; the official release and each pantry’s own communications should be checked for the latest operational details.