Animal-Friendly Hurricane Shelter Filled to Capacity

The animal-friendly hurricane shelter at Suffolk County Community College's East Campus in Riverhead is now full, officials said.

The shelter, run by the Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) started taking families and their pets at 9 a.m. Saturday morning, but by 4 p.m. the pet shelter was full with 40 dogs and cats, two birds and two hamsters, said SPCA Chief Roy Gross.

"We're maxed out at this point," Gross said.

However, there are several other nearby shelters that are accepting owners and their pets. Southold shelters are pet-friendly, though they require animals be in cages or crates. Hampton Bays school and Montauk Community Playhouse are also taking animals. And the SPCA is operating another animal-friendly shelter in Brentwood.

Gross said the SPCA took photos of families and their pets and gave the owners yellow wristbands to make sure everyone went home with the right pet and no animals were stolen or lost after Hurricane Irene hits later Saturday night.

He added that SPCA members will rotate in 12 hour shifts to care for the animals, which are being held in the Woodhouse building on campus.

The SPCA will also use a nearby mobile hospital van to run electricity into the pet's building in case the power goes out.

"We'll be here for the duration, whatever it takes," Gross said. He said the owners were housed in the nearby Peconic building and are being cared for by the County Emergency Response Team.

Pet owners came from across Eastern Suffolk to board their pets from the impending storm.

Daniel, of Mastic Beach, said he, his father, and his brother all fled their house when they heard it fell within the flooding zone.

Daniel and his family brought their two dogs, Lady and Toffy, and their pet cat, Penguin, to the shelter.

He said it was the first time they've ever evacuated their home, but added they left not because of the surge, but because his father was ill.

"He has kidney failure, and he's on dialysis," Daniel said. "If anything happened we wouldn't be able to get him help."

Another man, who asked to remain anonymous, said he had traveled from Brookhaven to the shelter to board his pet dogs. He was the last person to check his pets into the shelter.

A few minutes later and woman and her husband walked in the door to board their pets at the shelter. Gross began to explain the shelter was full and the couple could travel to Brentwood for the other SPCA shelter in Suffolk when the woman interrupted him.

"I guess we'll be on the road all day," she said and stormed out of the door.