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ment of any animals al- ready in the home to make sure they're com- pa5ble. Addi5onally, adopters are required to get a reference from a vet, three personal references, and permis- sion from any relevant management compa- nies or landlords. "People who come here to adopt have an extreme passion to take an animal out of the rescue environment," said Bernstein. "When you come to a shelter, you have a different way of thinking. You want to see that animal be happy, healthy, and loved, because most of them have a story." It is impera5ve that any parent that adopts with a child under- stands that an animal is to be highly respected. A child who is young should be educated as to their sensi5vity, care and love. There have been too many inci- dents that have not been the animal's fault but rather due to neg- lect. All they want is to be pe6ed and loved. "Our volunteer com- munity is an integral part of the shelter oper- a5ons," said Bernstein. "They come in to share 5me, to help with adop- 5ons, events, to social- ize the animals, and help with fundraising. Our staff is like a family. We are here for the ani- mals. It is a 5ght unit. We are here to support each other and work to- wards the number one cause, which is what we can do for the animals. Anyone who wants to work for us must have that mentality." www.fourlegsgood- nynj.org "They need more a6en5on, need to be fed around the clock. We call them bo6le babies and give them one on one a6en5on regularly." Mothers who have just given birth are also given temporary homes so they can have quiet, nurse the babies, and get the necessary care. Here's just one of the happy out- comes: "The four ki6ens we found on our porch were brought to Four Legs Good's amazing foster families where they were given so much love and care. The ki6ens learned how it felt to be held, cud- dled and kissed; they got to play with humans for the first 5me and even romp around with ki6ens from other li6ers. These families do such a wonderful job socializing ki6ens. We couldn't resist adop5ng two of the ki6ens (Max and Micah) and the other two were adopted to- gether. I can't imagine a be6er outcome for the kit- tens. There are up to 200 cats and ki6ens and 45 dogs housed there, and the family extends to bunnies, guinea pigs and other animals in need of a home. "We have quite a few guinea pigs and rabbits," said Bernstein. "There are quite a lot of backyard breed- ers who want to sell the animals. When they can't, they let them go free, so o%en people will find them and bring them in. Every animal that leaves the shelter goes through their adop5on process. It entails making sure all the vaccina5ons are all up to date, a spay or neuter, and implan5ng a microchip so it can be tracked in case it gets away from the shelter or its future owner. People looking to adopt a pet go through a vigorous ve7ng process (no pun intended). They are required to share informa5on about the family unit where the animal will live as well as an assess- There are up to 200 cats and kittens and 45 dogs housed there, and the family extends to bunnies, guinea pigs and other animals in need of a home. 64 HOOK MAGAZINE | 2024

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