A little bit of change has gone a long way for one Setauket-based wine shop.
Bob Hebert and his team at Hamlet Wines, 730 Rt. 25A, started collecting spare change about six months ago to benefit the Brookhaven Animal Shelter in order to pay for formal dog training for some of the dogs that have been in the shelter the longest.
The purpose behind the project, Hebert said, was to help the animals become more likely to find forever homes.
“A dog trained to walk on a leash, sit, stay has an easier chance of finding a forever family to adopt,” Hebert said. “Our customers have been amazing. In a short six months we have collected enough spare change to have a trainer come to the shelter and start to train.”
Hebert said the trainer also wants to help and committed to match every hour donated with one of her own.
The change collection for Brookhaven shelter dogs will continue through Dec. 31.
The Hartlin Inn parking lot was full of furry friends from puppies to older dogs and kittens for the Sound Beach Civic Association’s fourth annual Pet Adopt-A-Thon in Sound Beach, Saturday.
Shelter’s and organizations like Save-A-Pet, the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons, Grateful Greyhounds, Last Chance Animal Rescue, Long Island Bulldog Rescue and other organizations showed their many pets that are up for adoption. Organizations like the Regina Quinn Legacy Fund, which helps provide funds for animals in need, was also in attendance.
According to Bea Ruberto, president of the Sound Beach civic, four dogs and one cat were adopted several hours into the adopt-a-thon, and three more dogs were adopted by the end of the event. In addition to adopting pets, people could also get their face painted, enter a raffle to win a basket of pet-related prizes and donate money to organizations to help their cause.
All proceeds went to the animal organizations in attendance.
The Sound Beach Civic Association hosted its first Pet Adopt-A-Thon in 2012, and the association intends on continuing its efforts to find loving homes for local pets in need.
Save-A-Pet Animal Rescue and Adoption Center is hosting its annual Kitten Shower on Saturday, Oct. 3, offering felines for adoption.
The event, at the shelter on Route 112 in Port Jefferson Station, will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., when kittens can be adopted for $50. The furry friends are all spayed or neutered, are up-to-date with their vaccines and have had flea prevention treatment applied.
Refreshments will be served.
The shelter is also requesting donations of much-needed supplies, like canned kitten food, Purina Kitten Chow, and kitten milk replacement, for kittens in local foster homes.
For more information or to learn how to volunteer for the nonprofit organization, call Save-A-Pet at 631-473-6333.
Little Shelter Animal Rescue & Adoption Center hosts 18th annual Pet-A-Palooza
The Little Shelter Animal Rescue & Adoption Center in Huntington held its 18th annual Pet-A-Palooza event over the weekend, featuring cats, dogs, a Chinese auction, live entertainment, face-painting and more. The weekend-long event at the Warner Road shelter is a celebration of all things furry and friendly.
He’s gentle and kind and loving, Valerie Sanks, of Rocky Point, explains. He’s got a Frank Sinatra debonair-style class, he’s well mannered, good in the car and loves people, especially children. His name is Bravo and, sorry, ladies, he’s not human. But, he’s still a great catch — or should we say fetch — with the capacity to love unconditionally.He also isn’t taken, and he could be yours.
Brookhaven Town will be waiving its animal shelter fees on Saturday, Aug. 15, in honor of a Clear the Shelter event that seeks to encourage adoptions of the shelter’s many dogs and cats.
Sanks, a Brookhaven animal shelter volunteer and dog owner, said dogs like Bravo who have lived in the shelter for extended periods of time often have trouble getting adopted because of factors beyond their control, like age, injury and appearance.
Bravo, a terrier mix, is estimated to be between 7 and 9 years old and has cropped ears.He was originally adopted from the shelter in 2011, but when his owners fell on hard times in 2014, he was brought back and is now in need of a new home.“He has every odd against him for getting a home,” Sanks said, but despite this, “he’s very sweet and very mellow.”
Sanks also volunteers at the Riverhead and Southold towns’ animal shelters and described herself as “a firm believer in town shelters.” She referred to the staff at the Brookhaven shelter as “an incredible group of workers.”
“When a dog needs something, people use their own money to buy it for them,” she said. “Town workers, on their day off, come down to the shelter just to walk the dogs.”
While the town and volunteers are trying to get more people to adopt the animals, Sanks said additional volunteers are always needed.
“Volunteering is needed immensely,” she said. “Especially when you have a shelter that could hold 80-plus dogs.”
Volunteers spend outdoor time with the dogs, take them on walks and give them treats, but helping out is not limited to direct interaction with the animals.Sanks noted that even things as simple as dropping off a jar of peanut butter, a toy or a warm blanket or towel can do a great deal to ensure that these animals remain happy and healthy.
“The most exciting day is when we have a volunteer meeting,” she said. “After the meeting is over, everybody goes to get their dogs and I stand in the parking lot and watch all the volunteers come out. It is the most beautiful thing anyone could ever see.”
Brookhaven’s Animal Shelter and Adoption Center is located at 300 Horseblock Road, Brookhaven. For more information, visit the center online at brookhaven.org/animalshelter or call 631-451-6950.
Panda, a black and white domestic short hair, has spent most of his life at Save-A-Pet Animal Rescue and Adoption Center in Port Jefferson Station. Every day this 4-year-old male lounges about his space in the shelter and waits for someone to walk in and adopt him.
Panda had lived in the shelter since December 2012. Save-A-Pet worker Susan Manolakis said Panda was adopted in the past but was returned for an undisclosed reason.
Since then Panda has been patiently waiting to find a permanent place to call home beyond the shelter. The only thing stopping people from adopting this calm and friendly cat is that he has tested positive for feline HIV/AIDS, otherwise known as FIV.
Save-A-Pet Executive Director Lynne Schoepfer said it’s possible he contracted the disease from his mother.
The disease cannot be passed from cats to humans. Panda can also be around other cats as long as they don’t bite, fight aggressively or mate.
Although Panda may catch or have more difficulty recovering from a cold, he is a healthy cat who will live a long life with the right diet and living conditions. Panda doesn’t show any symptoms of FIV, but the shelter recommends that cats like Panda avoid going outside and remain indoors to stay healthy.
Panda is neutered, has tested negative for feline leukemia, and is up-to-date with his vaccinations. Won’t you open your heart and home to this calm and friendly sweetheart? Save-A-Pet is waiving his adoption fee to help him find a family.
Save-A-Pet is located at 608 Route 112, Port Jefferson Station. For more information, call 631-473-6333 or visit www.saveapetli.net.
The memorial park on Port Jefferson Harbor was fluffier than usual on Saturday, during Save-A-Pet Animal Rescue and Adoption Center’s annual Hounds on the Sound event. Tails were wagging and tongues were licking at the event until rain started to fall.
Brookhaven Town is reducing adoption costs at its animal shelter this month.
According to a recent town press release, the Brookhaven Animal Shelter and Adoption Center on Horseblock Road will offer discounted adoption fees through June. While the fees are normally $137 for a dog and $125 for a cat, they have been dropped to $60.
The lower fee includes a free neuter or spay for the animal as well as a free microchip, vaccinations, heartworm test and animal license.
The reduced price is partly the result of renovations that are currently taking place at the shelter. The shelter’s website notes that “pet overpopulation is of great concern” and that it is especially important for some of the animals to be adopted during the next four to six weeks because kennels will be renovated during that timeframe.
The shelter has also invested in new air conditioners, freshly painted walls and new floors.
But Martin Haley, Brookhaven Town’s commissioner of general services, said adoption discounts like this one are common throughout the year regardless of special circumstances like construction and renovation, because the shelter staff is constantly trying to incentivize adoption.
As of Monday, there were 78 animals in the shelter.
Haley said the number fluctuates every day and the shelter’s goal is to keep the population manageable. He said the animals can become difficult to manage at numbers of 80 to 100, but it varies on a case-by-case basis with animals’ spatial and behavioral needs.
According to Haley, most of the animals currently housed at the shelter are dogs, but there are also about 30 cats and kittens available for adoption.
The shelter is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays; from 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursdays; from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays; and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays. It is closed on Wednesdays.
Anyone interested in adopting a pet may call the shelter at 631-451-6950 or visit www.brookhaven.org/animalshelter for more information.
The pups at Comsewogue Public Library’s inaugural Pet Adoption Fair couldn’t stop wagging their tails on April 25. Community members came out to pet their soft fur and get some kisses on a beautiful spring Saturday.