by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Adoption fees eliminated at Islip Animal Shelter

Yesterday the Town of Islip’s Supervisor Phil Nolan was proud to announce the elimination of adoption fees at the Islip Animal Shelter. At a press conference at the animal shelter Supervisor Phil Nolan, Commissioner Chris Andrade and Shelter Supervisor Joanne Daly were there to announce the news to Long Island. Mr. Nolan said, “Waiving the adoption fees for our shelter is a win-win for our Town,” said Supervisor Nolan. “Not only will we be able to find more great pets a loving family, but we will also be cutting back on our shelter expenses associated with medical care and animal food.”

The Town Board approved this with a vote of 4-1 to eliminate the $50 fee to adopt a pet from the Islip Animal Shelter. The elimination of the fees will make it easier to find homes for pets, as well as reuniting lost pets with their owners. In addition, this move will save money for the Town by reducing veterinary and maintenance costs.

Potential adopters should know however that although adoption fees have been eliminated, the Town still mandates a thorough screening process to make sure that the pets find good homes. Those wishing to adopt a pet from the Islip Animal Shelter will still have to meet several criteria before being allowed to take a pet home with them. They are not just giving out pets to anyone who comes along, which is a very good thing. Adopters will still have to pay a small fee for the New York State dog license which is required by NYS law and maintained by the town.

If you have never been to the Town of Islip Animal Shelter, and are looking for a pet to add as a member of your family – this is one of the best run municipal animal shelters around. Joanne Daly who is the shelter supervisor is a dedicated animal lover has a big heart and leads her staff to care for the animals with compassion and dedication. They also have a wonderful all volunteer group, called Shelter Link who work daily with the animals by giving them love and attention, daily walks and socialization.

The shelter also has many different purebred dogs waiting for homes. Just yesterday there were so many breeds it was amazing to see. Amongst the breeds there were: a huge all black Great Dane, a blued eyed Husky, a Belgian Malinois (what a sweetheart!), a small Poodle, an old Shar Pei, two Pekingese, a 6-month Chihuahua who just came in, a Cocker Spaniel, a Boxer, a Yorkie (just adopted!) and of course the happiest most gorgeous American Pit Bull Terriers and pit mixes. There are some really adorable cats there too.

If you are looking for a dog, cat, puppy or kitten, I would highly recommend going to the Town of Islip and seeing for yourself how well the animals are treated there and that need homes. The Town of Islip also offers a Free Responsible Dog Ownership Program that anyone can attend to learn about training, dog behavior, health and well being, dog park etiquette and much more and has been offering this successful program for 3-years now. No other town in the state offers this program and class attendees who were often at their wits end about relinquish their dog until they took this class.

If you are interested in adopting a pet please contact the shelter at 631-224-5660 or you can visit the Town of Islip Shelter website at www.islipcares.com.

Don’t shop, adopt locally.

Nikki - Belgian Malinois looking for a home

Pictured (left to right): Joanne Daly, Islip Town Shelter Supervisor along with members of her staff; Islip Town Supervisor Phil Nolan; Chris Andrade, Commissioner of Environmental Control; and Nancy Hassel, Founder of Long Island Pet Professionals.

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Top of the mornin’ to you – St. Patrick’s Day is upon on us – that means lots of wearin’ of the green, parades all across the Island and fun dog costumes. Wait, what? That’s right many dogs, cats and horses will be sporting the green in honor of the festive Irish season. This looks adorable and fun, but might not be so much fun for the pet. Make sure if you are heading out to Montauk on the 20th for the big St. Patty’s Day parade that: 1.) your pet doesn’t mind wearing clothing, bandana, sunglasses, etc. (some pets are not happy with clothing, don’t force it); 2.) that your pet has proper ID with both your home and mobile number on it and is attached to their collar; and 3.) that your pet is well behaved, and has been around large, very noisy crowds before; 4) and use a proper 6-foot leash (leather or cotton is best) to bring you dog with to the parade.

Parades are a lot of fun for us, but our four legged friends may not enjoy the experience at all. If you have never brought your dog before, maybe for safety’s sake, yours, your pets, and the crowd’s – leave that pup home. Dogs that are well adjusted, trained, and socialized may and can do just fine, but people tend to bring their dogs that aren’t or have never been exposed to what a parade can bring. Dogs can easily get frightened from bag pipes, fire truck sirens, drum core, people petting the dog without asking and could snap someone or some child, slip away and could get lost.  (I have personally seen dogs completely freaking out and squirming in their owner’s arms at parades.)

With a parade almost every weekend for St. Patty’s Day across Long Island, if you insist on bringing your pet, pay attention to them. If you dog seems terrified or is pulling away, stay back from the crowd, or better yet, bring him home. Dog’s ears are more sensitive than human ears, so a blaring fire truck could send him running for the hills, or make the dog just plain uncomfortable. So enjoy your St. Patrick’s Day and think about leaving Buddy at home.

I had a Doberman that I brought with me almost everywhere, and she was well behaved and didn’t mind, crowds or noise, kids petting her, etc. at a parade (and happened to love, love, love horses!). But I always watched her body language and paid attention to her behavior while there. If she seemed off or uneasy (which was very rare for her being a well adjusted dog and not to mention Doberman), we left. The dog I have now is way too much of a scardy cat, and I would never subject him to the noise, crowds and other people’s unruly dogs.  So I can enjoy the parade and festivities and he stays home and sleeps!

By Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

The Long Island Pet Expo drew in large crowds from across LI on Saturday, March 5, 2011, and with rain in the forecast for Sunday, expects the same turnout.  There is something for every type of pet or animal lover, whether you like dogs, pot bellied pigs, turtles, snakes, parrots and other wild life – this is the best place to see everything under one roof!

If you are thinking of adding a new pet to be a member of your family – there are rescue groups from all areas of LI with pets that are available for adoption from adorable little Yorkie, cats and kittens, amazing American Pit Bull Terriers, wonderful mixed breeds, ferrets and more.  Stop by each booth and get to know your local rescues, you may just find you new best friend.

One of the sweetest, adorable Pit Bulls looking for a Furever home at the Expo.

There are also fantastic educational shows and demonstrations for kids and families alike, like the Rainforest Reptiles Shows and the Birds of Prey Program.  You will also be oohhh and ahhed watching the flyball, dancing dogs, agility dogs, and the famous poker playing dog “Jilli Dog” and her friends. The bleacher stands were packed full of families watching and cheering on the different shows.  If you love cats, there is a cat show going on at the same time – some cat breeds you may have not seen in person before.  Tons of vendors too – if you are looking to purchase pet products for your pets.

If you were not able to make it today, the Pet Expo is taking place on Sunday, March 6 as well from 10am to 6pm at Suffolk Community College in Brentwood, NY.  For more details, cost and directions click here.  Be sure to pick up your complimentary copy of the ‘Pet Press’ published by the Long Island Press.

Also see Sunday’s schedule below.

SUNDAY – March 6

Dog Ring

10:30 AM       Agility & Frisbee Demonstrations by Doggie U

and LI Road Rage

11:15 AM       Dog Pals Dog Trick Show

12:00 Noon    Classic K9’s

12:45 PM       Dancing with Your Dogs

1:00 PM         Jilli Dog

1:30 PM         Agility and Flyball Demonstrations by Doggie U

and LI Road Rage

2:15 PM         Classic K9

3:00 PM         Dog Pals Dog Trick Show

3:45 PM         Dancing with Dogs

4:15 PM         Classic K9 Dog Show

5:00 PM         Agility, Flyball & Frisbee Demonstrations by  Doggie U

and LI Road Rage

Stage

11:00 AM      Rainforest Reptile Show

12:00 Noon   Petland Discounts Traveling Pet Show

12:30 PM      Birds of Prey Program

1:00 PM        Rainforest Reptile Show

1:30 PM        Dog Pals- How to Use Feeding Time to Train your Dog

2:15 PM        Pet Safe Coalition – “Leave No Animal Behind”

3:00 PM        Rainforest Reptile Show

3:30 PM        Petland Discounts Traveling Pet Show

4:00 PM        Birds of Prey Program

5:00 PM        Rainforest Reptile Show

Cat Ring

TICA CAT SHOW 10:00 am will continue all day until conclusion

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Found a lost dog…Now what?

If you see a loose dog, for most pet lovers our first instinct is to stop and see if we can help get the dog back to its owner and back home.  Does the dog have a collar with ID tags and a number to call to reunite the pet with its family?  Many times a dog gets loose with no visible ID, and no way to immediately get it back home.

Very recently a there was a sad story about a lost dog on Fox Five found in Nassau County. When a good samaritan saw the dog loose in the road, he wanted to help the dog out of harms way and get the dog back to its owners.   So the man stopped and coaxed the dog to him and brought him home.  He and his fiancé decided to post the dog in the Pets section of Craigslist.com, and with in a few hours the “owner” contacted them claiming it was her dog.  They met the next day in a shopping center nearby so she could pick up ‘her’ dog.  A couple hours after the dog was reunited with the supposed owner, the real owner contacted them about the dog.  It turns out the real owner only lived five houses away from where the dog was picked up.  So unfortunately the dog was given to someone who is not the real owner.

What you can do if you do find a loose dog with no ID:

• If you find a dog in a neighborhood, first and foremost, knock on some doors, it could be the dog was only a house or so away. (Which was the case here, the dog was only 5 houses away). This also goes hand in hand in getting to know your neighbors, and their pets.
• If the dog has no collar or tags, call or go to your local town animal shelter – the dog may be microchipped and most shelters have scanners to see if the dog has a chip and can help relocating the dog.  If you are leaving the dog at the shelter as a stray, town animal shelters by law have to hold for a period of time (usually seven days) before the dog can be placed for adoption.  This will also give the owner a chance to look to see if there dog is in the local town shelter.

• If the animal shelter is closed, go to your nearest veterinarian office, many vet offices also have scanners.

• If you do post the dog to a community pet section of a website like craigslist or if you post to Facebook – make sure the person claiming the dog is theirs has proof i.e. clear photo’s of the dog, medical records, can identify markings on the dog, maybe a scar from a past injury, if the dog is spayed or neutered or other information that the person can just tell from a picture. (I would ask these questions over the phone before reuniting).

• Watch the dog’s body language during the reuniting – the dog on the video didn’t look overly excited to see its ‘owner’ it almost seemed like it didn’t really know her.  The majority of dogs are so happy, excited, and ecstatic to see their owners again, even after just 5 minutes apart – so watch for that.  Over excitement is not a tell “tail” sign that the dog is theirs, but could help the rescuers spotting a fraud if the dog is acting shy or scared of the person claiming it is their dog.

• Does the dog respond to the name?  The horrible person in the video stealing the dog called the dog “baby” and anyone can call a dog baby.

To prevent the above from happening, dog owners can follow these tips:

• Have a collar or harness with ID tags on your dog at all times, with updated contact information. (Do not use a training collar for this purpose – a flat buckle collar is best.)

• Have your dog licensed with the state (dog licenses are required by state law and can be acquired at your local town clerk’s office), this is another form of ID and easy for town shelters to identify the dog and its owner.

• Does your dog escape, climb over or under your fence?  Be sure you have a secure yard if you know your dog is an escape artist.  Always check to see if your gate is securely closed, and teach your kids this as well.

• If your dog is an escape artist and known for getting out, be sure to get the dog microchipped.

• Is your dog spayed or neutered?  Dogs that are not “fixed” tend to want to get out and mate – so another good reason for spaying and neutering your pets.

• Does your dog know where he or she lives?  This may sound really silly, but if you never walk your dog, and it’s only a house dog or dog that only goes in your yard, the neighborhood could be a whole new big world for your dog to explore, easily get lost, not recognize anything and if you never walk your dog – how does your dog know which house is theirs?  (People who walk their dogs on a regular basis know that their dog could lead them right back home!)

• Get to know your neighbors!  If you know your neighbor has a German Shepherd and you see a loose German Shepherd in your neighborhood, chances are it is their dog.

We are hoping that the woman in the video tape is found comes forward and the dog Lilly is reunited with its owner very soon.  If you know who the person who stole the dog is, call Crime Stoppers at 800-244-8477.

By Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Living on Long Island we are very fortunate that once a year the most prestigious and biggest dog show comes to New York City.  The Westminster Dog Show draws thousands of dog lovers from around the world and is practically in our back yard.  With approximately 90 dogs entered from Long Island owners – some of which are breeders, owners, handlers – this year was a first time showing at Westminster for many of those dogs.  On Tuesday, February 15, 2011 a lot of the big dogs, and I mean this in size – not their status, took part in the competition.  One of those beautiful big dogs was the very handsome, playful and young Bull Mastiff “Brutus” (Bandog’s Brutus the II of Raven). Owned by Mike and Marilyn Schamroth of Hewlett – they were more than excited to see their boy in the ring – his first time at Westminster.  Mike & Marilyn have owned Bull Mastiffs before and have shown them – but it has been about 15-years since they have had the breed.  When I asked them, what made you get a back into the breed Marilyn Schamroth said, “We were in Florida and we happened to go to a dog show and saw the most beautiful brindle puppy and that pup let us to the breeder who we got Brutus from – it was kismet.”  Brutus who is now only 18-months old is already a champion and seasoned pro – he won the ‘Best of Winners’ at the Bull Mastiff Association Nationals in Massachusetts in Septembers 2010.  Brutus was led to that championship by his handler, Rolissa Nash – a long time Bull Mastiff breeder, owner, and professional handler, accomplished dog trainer and co-owner of Doggie U K9 Academy in Bay Shore, NY.  Mr. Schamroth said, “I can’t sing Rolissa’s praises enough – because with her it’s all about the dog, and the dog comes first – she has been fantastic to work with.”

Rolissa and Brutus in benching area.

Rolissa Nash said, “Brutus is a fantastic, even tempered, wonderful dog, eager to learn – a pleasure working with him and his owners.  They are more concerned about their dog being content and happy and if they thought their dog was unhappy doing dog a show, they would pull him out of the show without even thinking about it.   They want Brutus to be a well rounded dog so we have started him also in obedience and agility.”

Another new comer and Long Islander to show this year was “George” (CH BlacNFlat Burns and Allen) a Flat Coated Retriever owned by David and Carole Kralstein of Canine Club Getaway.  George started his show dog career at a single cluster of shows in tough North east competition in July of 2010 and in just 5 days earned his Championship title. He also won ‘Best of Breed’ and G2 (2nd Place of the sporting group), at the October 2010 Westbury Kennel Club show on Long Island. He also won 3 more Best of Breed titles at the Talbot Kennel Club, the Salisbury Maryland Kennel Club in November 2010, and Worchester Kennel Club in Massachussetts in December 2010.

George a very sweet and handsome boy is a willing and happy worker, while remaining the typical Flat-Coat goofball. He is currently dabbling in agility, and will begin working on field training in the spring.  George is also an accomplished Therapy Dog and has his Canine Good Citizen, his owners said, “George loves working with children as a therapy dog – he participates in a reading dog program where kids who may have trouble reading, read to him.” George who will be 3 years old in April is a tall boy and has a stable, solid temperament with both humans and other dogs.

George’s owner David said, “He had a great time and he looked great in the ring.  He was glad to get home and slept almost a whole day. He is now his goofball self.”  George also had a pretty big fan club at the Westminster show Frank Bonomo of Best Friends Dog Training, George’s trainer, and Dr. Keith Niesenbaum of Crawford Dog and Cat Hospital George’s veterinarian and his wife, who were all also first time visitors to the show.  They said they loved it and thought George did fantastic.

George in the ring at Westminster!

In one of the rings, the Newfoundland’s were showing and watching ringside, you could not take your eyes off the black and white or ‘Landseer’ newfie that was in the ring.  One of the spectators, Marcie Mackolin who is a new newfie owner said, “That’s my puppy’s father” beaming with pride. Marcie’s 8-month old puppy, Polly (Let Polly do the Printing) is also of the black and white variety and according to Marcie, “just the sweetest dog.”  Last year Marcie came to Westminster and saw Lancelot’s uncle in the ring, and well fell in love with the breed – and that led her to her Polly.  I asked Marcie if she is going to show her dog, and she said she’s contemplating it – then Lancelot won the group – and I said, “You have to show her now!”  Marcie was at Westminster this year to show support for Lancelot – and it seems to have worked.  Marcie is from Pennsylvania and got Polly’s breeder is from upstate NY, Lancelot lives in California – so maybe not from LI, but just shows that dogs come from all over to Westminster.

Lancelot

Polly, Lancelot's daughter.

This year there were six new breeds entered into Westminster: the  Boykin Spaniel; the Bluetick Coonhound; the Cane Corso; the Icelandic Sheepdog; the Leonberger; and the Redbone Coonhound.

Many of the breeds are actually old breeds, but new to the dog show.  The Cane Corso an Italian Mastiff had an impressive entry of 18 dogs and one more gorgeous than the next.  This breed’s popularity has taken off in the past 10-15 years and especially in the North East.  One of the handlers showing Vodoo, (see slide show), who is from Florida, said she was really surprised how many Corso’s were in the NY area.  I remember going to Rare Breed dog shows about 10 years ago to see them, it was great to see them in the ring at Westminster this year.

Cane Corso's for the first time at Westminster

The Leonbergers also a new, old breed – just amazing in to see in person.  Gentle giants in my opinion and just so beautiful to watch.  They also had a good showing of 13 dogs in the ring, although they were so big, it seemed like more than that.  I would not want to be a judge as they were all very impressive.

Leonberger's in the ring!

If you have never been to the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show – this is a must do for anyone interested in dogs, mark your calendars for next year as this is the Best in Show of dog shows!