Councilman Robert Holden hosted a pet adoption event to unite some furry friends with happy owners over the weekend.
Holden, a longtime animal welfare advocate, held the adoption event at Juniper Valley Park on Saturday, May 15.
The councilman partnered with Puppy Kitty NYC, an all-volunteer rescue group, and North Shore Animal League America, a no-kill animal rescue and adoption organization based in Port Washington, to hold the adoption event in City Council District 30.
“There were plenty of fur-ever friends available at our latest pet adoption event,” Holden wrote on a social media post.
Holden also took to social media to share images of community members hugging their new cats and dogs.
A proud cat owner of Rocky, Holden called on the City Council to establish a committee to protect animals in New York City in January.
“Creating a committee that could solely focus on holding hearings and oversight over city agencies that deal with animals would allow for our great legislative body to continue the work of the countless advocates who already do,” Holden wrote in a letter to City Council Speaker Corey Johnson.
Animal welfare matters are addressed under the Committee on Health, which Holden is a member of. But he believes the committee’s “jurisdiction is too vast,” according to the New York Post.
“While our city and country navigate the difficulties resulting from the novel coronavirus and the economic crisis, our animals have also suffered. Even before the pandemic, animal welfare-related policy had fallen by the wayside,” Holden said. “Therefore, I believe it is time that we have a standalone committee for animals.”
