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Patchogue Rotary Animal Assisted Therapy

Adding to the typical Saturday docket of sleeping, eating and playing, a few furry locals headed to a Port Jefferson Station library in search of a new home.

For the third consecutive year, the Comsewogue Public Library hosted a Pet Adoption Fair in the hopes of finding new homes for cats and dogs currently up for adoption through local organizations.

Save A Pet animal rescue in Port Jefferson Station, Last Chance Animal Rescue in Southampton, Patchogue Rotary Animal Assisted Therapy and Brookhaven Animal Rescue Alliance each sent representatives of the two-legged and four-legged variety to set up on the grounds of the library to meet prospective new families April 29.

“We really wanted to just bring the community together and just try to get some animals some homes,” Shelby Broderick, an adult services librarian at Comsewogue Public Library who helped to organize the event, said during an interview. “We thought that this was a perfect place since there’s always people coming and going, so we wanted to get some exposure for these animals and some therapy dog groups.”

Stephanie Winus of Save A Pet, a shelter-based rescue as opposed to a foster-home-based, said the shelter currently has about 15 dogs waiting for new “forever” homes.

“I like to do these events as a volunteer because I think it just gets the word out of what Save A Pet is, where it’s located, which is right in this neighborhood in Port Jeff Station, and also you get to see some of the dogs in person,” she said. “We’ve had dogs a year or two and eventually found the right home for them because the idea is to place them in a home where they’re going to be forever in, and not just place them to get them out of the facility so that more dogs come in.”

Andrea Allen, an event leader for Last Chance Animal Rescue, said the foster-based shelter has about 40 animals currently up for adoption.
“It’s so important because it brings awareness to the community of our mission of saving the animals from the high kill shelters down south,” she said.

Broderick said finding homes for the animals brought to the fair is important, but events like these can play a larger role.

“I feel like even if there’s just one adoption it’s worth it just to host some groups and get exposure for them,” she said. “Even if one dog gets a home that’s one less dog that’s in a shelter without a family.”

For more information about any of the groups visit saveapetny.org, lcarescue.org, praatinc.org or bhara.org.