Murphy - Norah And The Smithtown Animal Shelter

By Chris Biancaniello

Not many pups can say they’ve had to go through the trials and tribulations that Murphy has- his owner left Murphyhim in the care of the Smithtown Animal Shelter upon eviction from their home. Murphy, a 2-½ year old Shepherd Beagle mix, was given a full work-up by a local veterinarian who found he was suffering from advanced Lyme’s disease, bladder stones, and the painful effects of both. Due to the advanced Lyme’s disease, Murphy’s hind leg joints were swollen to the point that it made it difficult for him to walk.

Luckily for my new friend, Lyme’s disease in dogs is treatable and is not going to get the best of him. Thanks to the people of Kings Park & Smithtown, the Animal Shelter was able to raise over $1,500 for Murphy’s required bladder surgery at Kings Park Day. This brings Murphy one step closer to finding a new home and chasing Frisbees.

Stories like these are not uncommon for the staff at the Smithtown Animal Shelter. They have an entire wall dedicated to success stories. The wall is lined with pictures of dogs and cats all having found forever homes and loving owners. Their successes aren’t going unnoticed, as Supervisor Pat Vecchio has recently proposed building a new facility replacing the current shelter, located on Middle Country Road. 

Recently there have been complaints made about the conditions at the shelter. Supervisor Vecchio believes that the allegations of mistreatment are more of a space issue, rather than a staff issue stating that, “[Director Beatty] would have an easier time if he had more space in the building. It’s not a terrible place, but it needs more.” He also noted the fact that even the hallways were lined with animal cages. The proposal was met with a surprising amount of agreement by the oft-gridlocked board. 

It’s not hard to see that they’re quickly running out of space. The facility is a temporary home for roughly 100 cats and up to 24 dogs at a time, as well as an array of other animals including chickens, pheasants, and even a group of Peking ducklings that were abandoned in Gibbs Pond. The prospect of a new facility is exciting to Director George Beatty. His hope is that the current facility, which was built in the 50’s, could be replaced by one immediately behind the existing building in order to facilitate a more seamless transition between shelters. “Companion animals are held in high esteem by the community, and the community expects their shelter to do the same,” says Beatty. “We’ve made do with what we’ve had, but by current standards it’s not acceptable.” 

Amongst other things, the hope is that the new facility would have space for an actual Cat infirmary; the current space for the cat infirmary was once an employee break room that had to be given up. Now, the 13x11 foot office serves as a break room, animal inspection area, a workspace for the eight full time employees, and numerous other tasks due to the lack of space in the facility. 

NorahThe staff at the shelter deal with their fair share of heartbreak as well. Perhaps the most recent example of this has been the addition of Nora, a Shih Tzu, who was found in such poor condition that her hair was in knots tight enough to pull on her skin. Unfortunately for Nora, this was perhaps the least of her issues. Nora needed a number of tumors and growths removed, and has a condition that prevents her from creating tears to moisten her eyes thus leaving her ability to see in question. For this condition she’ll require eye drops twice a day for the rest of her life. All this after having spent two months at an animal hospital. Nora is an extreme case of neglect, but one that the staff at the shelter is equipped to deal with; now all they need is a facility that can do the same. 

Smithtown Animal Shelter & Adoption Center  - 410 East Main St. Smithtown, NY 11787 - (631) 360-7575 Email: sasac@tosgov.com

Update on Monday, July 7, 2014 at 10:40AM by .

The Smithtown Animal Shelter is very happy to report that both Nora and Murphy have been adopted.

Comments

[Michele]

I am the lucky one who adopted Nora last July. She is the sweetest most gentle little girl. She has many, many health issues that we are still trying to get to the bottom of, but she remains happy and peppy. I am happy to say she finally is getting the love she deserves and she is finally feeling safe and comfortable.