Farmingville, NY – Supervisor Mark Lesko and Councilwoman Jane Bonner have announced that the Town has started its annual Thanksgiving Drive to help make the holidays brighter for all the animals at the Brookhaven Animal Shelter and Adoption Center. The shelter is always in need of items for the comfort of its animals, and suggested items to donate are:

• Quality dry dog/cat food
• Canned dog/cat food
• Blankets, bedding
• Dog/cat toys
• Dog treats
• Leashes/collars
• Paper towels

“The Animal Shelter has hundreds of animals that need care and we rely on donations to help,” said Supervisor Lesko, “The holidays are a time of giving and I hope that animal lovers can also keep in mind our furry friends at the shelter.”

“Our staff at the Animal Shelter does a wonderful job caring for the animals and helping them find loving homes,” said Councilwoman Bonner. “But for those animals that don’t get adopted, we need to make them comfortable and that’s where the Thanksgiving Drive donations really help out.”

Donated items can be dropped off at the following locations:

Brookhaven Animal Shelter and Adoption Center
300 Horseblock Road, Brookhaven, NY 11719
Monday to Friday 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Sunday 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Brookhaven Town Hall
1 Independence Hill, Farmingville, NY 11738
Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The Town Animal Shelter has been very progressive in launching programs to increase adoption rates and pet retention and get animals spayed and neutered, especially focusing on the large population of Pit Bulls and Pit Mixes at the Animal Shelter.

Earlier this year, the Animal Shelter introduced “Spay it Forward”, a program that offers incentives to get animals spayed and neutered. For every Pit Bull that a resident gets spayed or neutered, the owner will receive a voucher to help another needy Pit Bull to receive the same services. The Animal Shelter is also providing free micro-chipping, vaccines, heartworm testing, and collars for anyone who gets their Pit Bull spayed or neutered.

The Brookhaven Bully Alliance (BBA) encourages other animal rescues to adopt Pit Bulls from the Brookhaven animal shelter and find loving homes for them. Every shelter dog that enters the BBA program is professionally evaluated, spayed or neutered, vaccinated and micro-chipped. $250 goes to each participating organization for the care of the animal.

An affiliate of the Town of Brookhaven Animal Shelter and Adoption Center, the Help the Animals Fund’s mission is to prevent cruelty to animals and to provide sick, neglected and injured stray animals at the Brookhaven Animal Shelter the much needed and deserved medical care that they would otherwise not receive. This fund is supported 100% by voluntary donations which are tax deductible. The Help the Animals Fund makes programs like Spay it Forward and the Brookhaven Bully Alliance possible.

For more information, call the Brookhaven Animal Shelter and Adoption Center at 631-286-4940 or visit www.brookhaven.org/animalshelter.

Division of Public Information * Office of the Supervisor
One Independence Hill • Farmingville • NY 11738 • Phone (631) 451-6595 • Fax (631) 451-6258