There’s no shortage of animals on Long Island looking to share the love they have to offer with the right family. The Manetto Hill Animal Hospital recently held its fifth annual “Paws 2 Love” Pet Festival and Benefit to give these animals the chance to make that happen.
Paws 2 Love hosted eight volunteer animal rescue groups at the Manetto Hill Animal Hospital, located at 122 Manetto Hill Road in Plainview. Each group was accompanied with a gaggle of adorable doggies (and some cats as well), who were all excited to dole out more than a few sniffs and licks in an attempt to find their forever homes, according to Randi Weiss, owner/administrator of the hospital.
“We’re an acute believer in helping out the shelters on Long Island, especially the ones that don’t have brick and mortar locations and are fostering animals right out of their own homes,” she said. “A lot of people come to us and ask if we know a breeder or a good pet store, so this is an amazing opportunity for people to come and meet people from eight different shelters and see what animals they have to offer for adoption.”
The Paws 2 Love event, sponsored by the Town of Oyster Bay, was a fun, family-friendly festival, combining fuzzy four-legged critters seeking their forever homes with food, music and an inflatable bouncy house for the kids. Tours of the animal hospital were also given, and a raffle drawing—comprised of gift baskets provided by local area businesses—generated much-needed funding, 100 percent of which was given to the rescue shelters in attendance.
“Last year we raised over $5,000 from raffles, and we divided it up amongst all of the shelters here…each got about $700,” said Weiss. “We have a lot of great local businesses that are gracious enough to give some really great prizes, and the money helps these shelters immensely.”
Weiss noted that Paws 2 Love has become a tradition that she intends to continue with for as long as possible. As word of mouth spreads, she said, the results have increased and improved each and every year.
“Last year we adopted 17 animals in a single day…the year before it was 12,” she said. “So, each year we’re getting better and better, and that’s amazing because these animals don’t have to go back to a cage. We try and let people know that we’re here, and that’s there’s an alternative to puppy mill animals.”
Among the representatives of various rescue groups at Paws 2 Love was Beth Marzo of Bethpage. Marzo runs the Forgotten Friends of Long Island, an animal rescue group based out of Levittown that fosters both dogs and cats in an effort to find each and every one of them a home all their very own.
“We have beautiful animals and we welcome anyone to come on down and see us,” she said. “We’ve been around for seven years, and in those seven years we’ve gotten hundreds of dogs and cats adopted into great families.”
Forgotten Friends of Long Island is located at 4 East Village Green in Levittown, in the basement of the Levittown Animal Hospital. Scott Passik of Levittown said he’s been volunteering there for quite some time, and he’s even gotten his family to pitch in as well.
“On Sunday nights my family comes down; my daughter feeds the cats and my son helps with the dogs. We’ve actually adopted three dogs from Forgotten Friends over the years…they work so hard to give them the care they need and to find them homes,” he said. “As a volunteer group, we need all the assistance we can get, and we really appreciate the Manetto Hill Animal Hospital holding Paws 2 Love every year…it’s a great family event and it helps out shelters like ours a great deal.”
“This is a wonderful event,” said Judy Klein of Plainview, who was at Paws 2 Love with her daughter, Jennifer, who was interested in possibly getting her first-ever puppy that day. “There are so many animals that need a home, and there are so many people—like the ones here today—who are volunteering their time and effort to find them one.”
The event, which drew numerous families looking to acquire a new, wet-nosed or whiskered member into their ranks, is the Manetto Hill Animal Hospital’s way of giving back to the community, according to Weiss.
“We’re such a community business, and we’re right smack in the middle of Plainview,” she said. “These are our friends, our family, and the animals are a part of us.”
For more pictures from the event, click here.
To find out more about Manetto Hill Animal Hospital, visit: www.manettohillanimalhospital.com.
To find out more about Forgotten Friends of Long Island, visit: www.forgottenfriendsoflongisland.org.
