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Lady

MEET LADY! This pretty little girl is Lady, a 2-year-old Chihuahua mix, currently waiting for adoption at Kent Animal Shelter. At just 11 pounds, she is the perfect lap dog who loves to give kisses and snuggle. Dubbed “a ray of sunshine” by her caretakers, Lady loves people, other dogs and going for walks. She is up to date on all her vaccines. Won’t you come by and say hello? You’re sure to get a kiss! Kent Animal Shelter is located at 2259 River Road in Calverton. For more information on Lady and other adoptable pets at Kent, please call 631-727-5731 or visit www.kentanimalshelter.com.

Update: Lady has been adopted!

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OH DEER!

Don Michne of Miller Place recently snapped this photo of a young white-tailed deer at Cedar Beach in Mount Sinai. He writes, “My wife, Mary, and I go for frequent walks at the beach. Mary was first to notice the deer. I took many photo’s of him; he seemed very tame. The next two evenings in a row we found him again, never in the same location but always nearby. I got the feeling he was expecting us. We never fed him, just talked. Of the dozens of photos I took of him, we liked this one the most, sticking his tongue out at us.”

Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected].

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PARTY OF SEVEN Jane Edsall spotted this family of mute swans swimming in Mount Sinai Harbor two weeks ago. She writes, “I am a resident of Mount Sinai and have enjoyed the harbor and its wildlife my whole life.” Brought to this country from Europe in the mid-1800s to adorn city parks and large estates, mute swans are known to mate for life. The cygnets will stay with their parents through the first winter.

Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected].

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Annabelle

MEET ANNABELLE!

Hi, I’m Annabelle. I have lived in a house with a family my whole life, but now someone in that family has developed allergies and I need to find a new place to live. I am extremely sweet and enjoy being petted. I will sit on your lap and watch TV with you if you’ll let me. All I want is a nice, quiet home where I can spend the rest of my life being someone’s best friend. I come spayed, microchipped and I’m up to date on all my vaccines. Come visit me at Kent Animal Shelter, 2259 River Road in Calverton and see for yourself what a sweetheart I am. For more information on me and other adoptable pets at Kent, please call 631-727-5731 or visit www.kentanimalshelter.com.

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HOO ARE YOU? Noah A. Colamussi of Rocky Point spotted this eastern screech owl just hanging out in a tree in his backyard last week after a rain shower. Despite their name, screech owls do not screech, instead communicating through whinnies and soft trills. Night hunters, their diet consists mostly of large insects and small rodents.

Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected].

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By Matthew Kearns, DVM

The weather is warming up and the days are getting longer. This can only mean one thing: kittens, kittens, kittens and more kittens! All these kittens need homes, but care should be taken in introducing them to your home if you have other cats. The two most common diseases that we worry about before introducing cats to our households are the feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV).

Just to be clear: These viruses are no risk to humans — these viruses are species specific, cat to cat only (even dogs are safe). However, healthy looking kittens could be carrying (and potentially infecting other cats) with these viruses. Also, the prevalence of these viruses is low (both less than 10 percent in multiple studies) in kittens adopted from shelters and rescues.

FeLV and FIV are in a family of viruses called Retroviridae, or retroviruses. All retroviruses have the unique ability to incorporate themselves into the DNA of normal cells. This means once infected, always infected, and the diseases these viruses cause in cats are always fatal. FeLV causes leukemia and other forms of cancer (e.g., lymphoma) as well as suppresses the immune system.

FIV is similar to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in that the virus over time destroys the immune system and the most benign infections eventually become lethal. To compound the problem a kitten or cat may be positive for infection and negative for any symptoms for months or even years.

The nice thing about the tests that are available are that they are point of care tests, or tests that can be run at the shelter/rescue/animal hospital and have results within less than 15 minutes, as well as these tests also rely on antibodies against these viruses.

Kittens that are infected with FeLV or FIV will produce antibodies and test positive long before they start showing signs of disease. The flip side of this equation is there is a lag time between when the kitten was infected and when they produce enough antibodies to produce a positive on the test.

It takes about four weeks after infection to test positive on the test for FeLV and could take three to four months to test positive after infection for FIV. Most kittens are adopted between eight to 10 weeks of age so there is a window where a healthy-looking kitten could be carrying the virus.

Someday we will have effective medications to cure these diseases but, for now, we don’t. The best thing we have is testing and, if positive, isolating the kittens that are positive to reduce the risk of spreading infection.

Make sure that before introducing a new kitten to your household, there is proof that he has been tested. If testing was not done (even if the mother or littermates tested negative), I recommend testing each individual kitten through your own veterinarian before introducing the kitten to your other cats.

Dr. Kearns practices veterinary medicine from his Port Jefferson office and is pictured with his son Matthew and his dog Jasmine.

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Buddy

MEET BUDDY! Poor, poor Buddy. He once had a family to call his own … until they decided they did not want him anymore. Buddy was surrendered to a high kill shelter in Texas, where he had little chance at survival. Unfortunately, he suffers from a previous injury on his front right leg that healed wrong due to his first owners not getting him the medical attention he needed. With the amount of energy and happiness this guy has, you would never expect him to have had such a rough start to life. That’s all behind him now and he is currently at Kent Animal Shelter looking for his real forever home.

All this handsome boy wants is to just love and be loved. A 3-year-old Australian Cattle Dog mix, Buddy gets along well with other dogs and would prefer to be in a home without children. Buddy comes neutered, microchipped and is up to date on all his vaccines.

Kent Animal Shelter is located at 2259 River Road in Calverton. For more information on Buddy and other adoptable pets at Kent, please call 631-727-5731 or visit www.kentanimalshelter.com.

Update: Buddy has been adopted!

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'Long Island Surfer' by Donna Crinnian
“Guggenheim Museum Ceiling” by Joe Constantino
“Sun Kissed” by Joseph Peragallo
“Colors of Nature” by Mike DiRenzo
“Big Eyes” by Janet Pieper
“Fort Royal” by Robert Oliva
“Morning Ride” by Karen Celella
“One Good Lick” by Barbara McCahill
“Riding with Dad” by Jo-Anne Bodkin
“Nuns in the Rain, Myanmar” by Richard Witkover
'Roxie's Kits' by Jay Gammill
“Corinth Sheep” by James Napoli

“Photography helps people see.” — Berenice Abbott

By Heidi Sutton

Last Thursday evening, Gurwin Jewish Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Commack held a reception honoring the award recipients of its annual Photo Contest complete with a traditional slide show.

This year’s competition, which has grown exponentially from humble beginnings 24 years ago, drew over 700 entries from amateur photographers across the country. In all, 45 photos were selected to be enlarged and framed for permanent display for the enjoyment of those who live and work in the 460-bed nursing and rehabilitation center. According to Dennine Cook, director of public relations for Gurwin, the yearly event began as a way to decorate the walls of the newly opened facility.

“That first year, we had 100 entries and chose 10 winners, mounted them on foam board and hung them in the main hall,” she said. When some of the photos, especially those depicting babies and pets, started to wear out from being kissed so much, the staff started to frame the winners and “we decided that they should remain in our collection for many years.”

A contest with a purpose

Today, the photographs are moved from the Helen and Nat Tiffen Gallery, located in the main corridor at Gurwin, to the resident units as each year’s new group of winners is announced. “Each of the winning photos for the past 20 plus years is hanging on the wall somewhere in the facility, bringing joy to someone each and every day,” said Cook.

Addressing the winners, the public relations director said, “Although competitive and a great achievement for you as a photographer, [the contest] is really about the people who get to see your work once it is chosen,” adding that for the nursing home residents, the beautiful photographs bring back fond memories and “stir up a whole host” of emotions. “And it’s at times like that when we remember why we hold this contest,” she added.

This year’s judges, Michael Cassera of The Tiffen Company (which has sponsored the event for the last 11 years), Alex Horvath of Newsday and Tony Lopez (Tony Lopez Photography) had the arduous task of choosing grand prize winners along with honorable mentions for 12 categories including Nature, Pets, Children, Action/Sports, and Long Island/New York as well as Best in Show and Best in Show Runner-Up. In addition, a panel of resident judges also chose six of their favorites.

What happens to the remaining 650 plus entries? According to Dawn Lettau, director of therapeutic recreation for Gurwin, nothing goes to waste. “We can’t wait for the [remaining] entries to be turned over to us each year. We use them as inspiration for original paintings, collages and other projects all year long, so even photos that aren’t selected as winners are winners to us,” she said.

“While you certainly will bring home a memento of your award tonight, I hope you will leave with the knowledge that the true ‘prize’ is that your photo will bring a smile to someone’s face and a lift to someone’s spirits,” said Cook. “All of the selections, will be judged, discussed and enjoyed by so many appreciative eyes for years to come and to me that is the real honor.”

Entries for the 2018 Gurwin Photo Contest will be accepted beginning in mid-February 2018. Past participants will receive an entry form in the mail. Entry forms will also be available online at https://www.gurwin.org/about/photo-contest/.

2017 WINNING SELECTIONS

Best in Show “Corinth Sheep” by James Napoli

Best in Show Runner-Up “Riding with Dad” by Jo-Anne Bodkin

Action/Sports Category

Grand Prize “Long Island Surfer” by Donna Crinnian

Honorable Mention “Bull Dogger” by Frank DiBenedetto

Honorable Mention “Rappelling in the Negev” by Dan Greenburg

Altered/Enhanced Category

Grand Prize “Guggenheim Museum Ceiling” by Joe Constantino

Honorable Mention “Near You” by Susan Kozodoy-Silkowitz

Honorable Mention “Existential Escalator” by Robert Oliva

Children’s Category

Grand Prize “Sun Kissed” by Joseph Peragallo

Honorable Mention “African School Children” by Carol Goldstein

Honorable Mention “Big Eyes” by Janet Pieper

Landscapes Category

Grand Prize “Mystical Canyon” by Andrew Ehrlich

Honorable Mention “Autumn Sun” by Michael Danielson

Honorable Mention “Portland Head Lighthouse” by Ellen Dunn

Long Island/ New York Category

Grand Prize “Morning Ride” by Karen Celella

Honorable Mention “Ball of Fire” by Joseph Deo

Honorable Mention “Tribute of Light” by Marzena Grabczynska

Nature Category

Grand Prize “A Hobbit’s View” by Alan Sloyer

Honorable Mention “Colors of Nature” by Mike DiRenzo

Honorable Mention “Northern Lights” by Lorraine Piskin

People Category

Grand Prize “Cuban Farmer” by Kathleen Hinkaty

Honorable Mention “Indian Man” by Jan Golden

Honorable Mention “Beyond Borders” by Belle Lin

Pets Category

Grand Prize “One Good Lick” by Barbara McCahill

Honorable Mention “Hi There!” by Jane Maresco

Honorable Mention “Oliver” by Mario Santiago

Still Life Category

Grand Prize “Fort Royal” by Robert Oliva

Honorable Mention “The Bouquet” by Winifred Boyd

Honorable Mention “Elgin No. 1” by Stan Mehlman

Travel Category

Grand Prize “Nuns in the Rain, Myanmar” by Richard Witkover

Honorable Mention “Field of Light” by Karen Celella

Honorable Mention “Bay of Fundy” by Carol Goldstein

Wildlife Category

Grand Prize “Watching the Sunset” by Donna Crinnian

Honorable Mention “Breeding Plumage” by Donna Crinnian

Honorable Mention “Roxie’s Kits” by Jay Gammill

Student Category

Grand Prize “Flying Free’ by Susan Krage

Honorable Mention “Sophia” by Eliana Davidoff

Honorable Mention “African Sunset” by Teddy Koutsoftas

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LIVING THE BEACH LIFE Jay Gammill of East Setauket captured this image of a piping plover at West Meadow Beach in Stony Brook on May 3. The shorebird, which derives its name from the bell-like whistled peeps it uses for communication, is considered threatened due to human activity, receiving protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1985.

Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected].

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Shino is looking for his forever home. Photo courtesy of Kent Animal Shelter
Pick me!!!

MEET SHINO! This cutie is Shino! He’s a shih tzu/terrier mix and is 6 years young. Shino gets along well with everyone and everything! There isn’t a dog, cat, human or animal that he has come across that he hasn’t liked!

All Shino wants is a nice home where he can snuggle up on the couch and watch TV with you. He’s just so easy going and lovable … it’s hard to imagine that no one could want this sweet little boy. Shino is neutered, microchipped and up to date on all his vaccines.

Kent Animal Shelter is located at 2259 River Road in Calverton. For more information on Shino and other adoptable pets at Kent, please call 631-727-5731 or visit www.kentanimalshelter.com.

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