In honor of animal 'guardian angel' Betty White, Long Islanders donate to local shelters 

To celebrate Betty White’s 100th birthday, fans across Long Island are donating to local animal shelters in memory of the late actress, comedian and animal lover.

White, television's perennial Golden Girl who worked with animal advocacy organizations throughout her life, would have turned 100 on Monday. Soon after her death on Dec. 31, a post asking for donations in her honor went viral on social media, prompting scores of people to pledge money to local animal shelters. As of Wednesday, local groups have raised from as much as $150 to nearly $2,000.

On Long Island, the Town of Islip Animal Shelter is one of several shelters soliciting donations. It asks donors to contribute $5 to the newly opened shelter or to purchase items on the shelter’s Amazon wish list to benefit the animals.

"Her memory will live on through residents’ acts of kindness," Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter said in a news release.

Monetary donations will be used to purchase toys, bedding and food for the animals, shelter supervisor Teri Giacalone told Newsday on Wednesday. To celebrate White’s birthday, rescue dogs donned party hats and indulged in "pupcakes," a sweet treat from a local bakery. Additionally, the shelter is lowering adoption fees for dogs 5 and older next week.

With about 50 dogs and 25 cats currently in staff’s care needing food, shelter, toys and medical treatment, costs add up. Toys serve as more than just entertainment, Giacalone said. Stuffed toys and chews allow the shelter to observe dogs' interest in play and evaluate their temperament, which helps staff better inform prospective adopters about the dogs.

And just as the price of human food has risen during the pandemic, so has pet food, Giacalone said. Specialty foods for pets requiring a specific diet, whether over the counter or from a veterinarian, cost even more.

"It’s a big help to shelters and rescues," Giacalone said of the donations. "Just with the amount of animals that come in, whether they’re strays or just families who can’t take care of them anymore and have to give them up for various different reasons, it puts a burden on shelters and rescues."

Suffolk County SPCA Chief Roy Gross said many shelters across Long Island are facing problems brought on by the pandemic and that the SPCA, which enforces animal welfare laws, has seen increased pet abandonment, especially among domesticated rabbits. This means local shelters and rescues have to make extra room for the pets discarded by their owners.

In Wantagh, Last Hope, Inc. Animal Rescue & Rehabilitation raised nearly $2,000 in online donations by Wednesday after it joined the social media campaign Monday, said Joanne Anderson, the shelter’s outreach coordinator.

"She’s sort of like a guardian angel for all animals," she said.

Besides Islip, the Towns of Huntington and Babylon are participating in the challenge to boost donations for animals in need. Huntington Town Supervisor Ed Smyth urged residents to contribute in "legendary" White’s honor to Give a Dog a Dream, a nonprofit that funds medical surgeries for dogs in the town’s shelter.

With Deborah Morris and Lisa Colangelo

By Brinley Hineman

brinley.hineman@newsday.com

Brinley Hineman covers the Town of Hempstead and the City of Long Beach for Newsday. She previously was a reporter in Nashville, Tennessee, and is a West Virginia native.