Photo by Síle Moloney
New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced Saturday, July 26, a new $1 million investment in Animal Care Centers of New York City (ACC) to increase capacity to better care for the animal shelter populations in Manhattan and Queens and improve shelter conditions by supporting the hiring and training of 14 additional staff for those locations.
The news comes as ACC announced this week that it was “suspending intake due to critical capacity issues.” ACC announced it remained open for adoptions, drop-off of animals that required emergency medical care, or posed a public safety risk, as well as those being dropped off by government agencies.
A Bronx ACC shelter currently operates from 464 East Fordham Road. As reported, a new Bronx ACC shelter, the first full-service animal shelter for the borough, and a completely renovated Brooklyn ACC are expected to open next year. Norwood News asked ACC if its recent announcement regarding being at capacity was in respect of all ACC locations or just Manhattan, as well as how intake at The Bronx center compares to other boroughs. We will share any updates we receive. The number for the Bronx Center is (212) 788-4000.
“In so many ways, our pets care for us and our loved ones, and it’s important that we care for them, too,” said Adams. “ACC’s work to ensure no animal is left behind is essential to protecting animals across New York City, and our administration is proud to invest $1 million in additional funding to support the work ACC does and boost their capacity to better care for animals. I also urge New Yorkers looking for a pet addition to their families to adopt, so we can ensure that every animal can find a loving home.”
Photo courtesy of the NYPD
ACC is a non-profit organization contracted by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOH) to serve as the city’s open-admissions, animal–shelter system. Officials say it finds placement for animals through direct adoptions from the public and through partnerships with hundreds of other animal welfare organizations.
Officials say before animals are adopted, ACC ensures that every animal is vaccinated, licensed, and micro-chipped. ACC offers resources to reduce pet surrenders and help people keep their animal companions, as well as to reunite lost pets with their families.
They said in 2022, the Adams administration opened a new ACC on Staten Island, in 2024, the first full-service animal shelter opened in Queens and a new Pet Adoption Center opened in Manhattan.
Some residents and groups actively criticize ACC for euthanizing animals. We asked ACC what their policy is in this regard and will share any feedback we receive.
According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, “It’s never an easy decision to make. Sometimes, the kindest thing you can do for a pet that is so ill or severely injured that they’ll never be able to resume a quilty [sic] life, is to have your veterinarian provide a humane death by euthanasia.”
Photo courtesy of the NYPD
Norwood News was notified about a small, tuxedo cat (pictured) in distress on East 205th Street and Lisbon Place in Bedford Park, July 15. We called ACC and a unit from Manhattan arrived within about 15 minutes and took him away as the neighbors appeared to believe he was not owned by anyone in particular.
The cat was skin and bone and seemed delirious, was falling over, but was still breathing. We thought maybe he had been hit by a car as he couldn’t walk. We were later informed he had no broken bones. “He was infested with maggots internally,” a representative said. “He would have suffered even more had you not found him. Due to the severity of the physical condition of this animal, being so maimed, diseased, disabled or infirmed, humane euthanasia is warranted and justified to prevent any additional prolonged suffering or pain.”
The representative said he was around 9 months old. [We posthumously named him “Newsy” since he made the news, and his story may help other street animals.]
Animal welfare groups encourage prospective pet owners to always adopt rather than buy pets as buying only helps breeders make money at the expense of over-bred female animals.
Photo courtesy of the NYPD
Police said that on Thursday, July 24, at around 4.45 a.m. at 128th Street and 116th Avenue, a person was observed dragging a motionless dog, pouring an accelerant on the animal and igniting it. They said the person then fled the location on foot to parts unknown, the ASPCA was notified, and the NYPD Animal Cruelty Squad was investigating the incident.
Police said the suspect was described as male, had a dark complexion, and was last seen wearing a maroon sweatshirt with a POLO logo in tan lettering across the chest, gray pants, and a light brown “MCM” backpack, as seen in the attached photos.
On Tuesday, July 29, police said that pursuant to an ongoing investigation, Isaiah K Gurley, 29, of Conduit Avenue in Queens was arrested on July 28, at 8.20 p.m. in the confines of the 110th Precinct.
They said he’s been charged with two counts of reckless endangerment, aggravated cruelty to animals, torture/injury/not feeding an animal, and arson with intent to damage property.
It’s been reported by some animal welfare groups that when families fall on hard times, one of the first ways they feel they can save some money is to give up the family pet, even if they don’t want to.
For hours and services for each of ACC’s locations call (212) 788-4000, 10AM – 6PM, 7 days a week. For help, please call (212) 788-4000
email: CommunityPets@nycacc.org, nycacc.org/services/surrender.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crimestoppers website at https://crimestoppers.
All calls are strictly confidential.
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.