Thursday, October 1, 2026
Posh Pets’ four-legged rescuees will remain in the doghouse, in a good way, because the organization’s contract to manage Long Beach’s animal shelter was recently renewed for an additional five years. The shelter, at 770 Park Place, along Reynolds Channel, underwent a series of operational changes over nearly a decade before finding consistent management in Posh Pets, which coordinates with rescue and adoption facilities in the metropolitan area.
The contract renewal was approved unanimously at the Sept. 1 City Council meeting. “We have been pleased with Posh Pets’ operations since they took over,” City Manager Dan Creighton said. “Prior to Posh Pets, operations were something less than ideal when run by the city, as well as other outside entities.” The no-kill shelter, which takes in animals from the Long Beach and New York City areas, currently cares for nearly 40 cats and dogs and arranges 500 to 600 pet adoptions each year, with the help of nearly 40 volunteers and 12 paid staff members.
In 2007, after operating for nearly 25 years, the Long Beach Animal Shelter closed, and the nearby Freeport Animal Shelter took on rescue work in the area until 2011. Rescue Ink, a well-known animal activist group at the time, was contracted to reopen the shelter before vacating it in 2012 amid allegations of financial misappropriations. The Long Beach Police Department coordinated with volunteers to continue shelter operations before the City Council finalized a contract with Posh Pets in 2014. The agreement has been renewed a number of times in the intervening 12 years.
Posh Pets initially received $95,000 of city funding per year for rescue and rehabilitation services. Its most recent contracted rate, which began in 2021, was just over $123,000 per year, and with the latest contract, it will receive $200,000 per year. That significant expense, Creighton explained, is still substantially less than the shelter’s nearly $700,000 operating budget: Posh Pets has reported spending roughly $430,000 to operate the facility, including the cost of staff and daily maintenance, as well as roughly $250,000 for rescue care, rehabilitation and fostering expenses.
As Long Beach’s official animal shelter, Posh Pets works with city officials to maintain the building and property. Posh Pets is responsible for general upkeep, while the city takes care of plumbing, electrical and sewer repairs. “Anything that needs fixing on the building, I just put a work order in and they come over,” Linda Vetrano, founder and president of Posh Pets Rescue, said. “They always work with us very well.”
At the Sept. 1 meeting, the City Council approved a plan to replace the shelter’s HVAC system. The new unit is expected to cost close to $390,000, with a grant from the state Department of Agriculture and Markets covering $225,000 of the expense. Steve Friedman, deputy commissioner of the city Department of Public Works, said that the Nassau County Department of Health cited the shelter for poor ventilation, necessitating an urgent solution. The new unit, Friedman said, will deliver central air circulation — an upgrade from the building’s current, outdated split-system ventilation — but also requires a matching upgrade of the electrical output. PSEG plans to upgrade the electrical service at no cost to the city.
“I think we’re all very happy what with what Posh Pets is doing,” City Councilman Michael Reinhart said, adding that City Council President Brendan Finn adopted a dog there. “I know a lot of my friends have gotten their dogs from Posh Pets,” Reinhart said.
The fourth annual Posh-a-Thon charity walk fundraiser and adoption event is scheduled to take place at Kennedy Plaza on Nov. 8. The rescue group is also open to residents interested in fostering shelter dogs or volunteering at the shelter. To volunteer, foster a pet or adopt a cat or dog in need, visit poshpetsrescueny.org.
