Hudson came out to have his nails done. “He was a very good boy, apparently,” said owner Liz Earle. “I got a good report.”
But Hudson wasn’t just enjoying a day at the spa. He was connecting with old friends and giving back to the people who literally gave him a new life. A big, friendly puppy, Hudson was born Sept. 1 and adopted by Earle in November thanks to the efforts of the Secaucus Animal Shelter. And all the proceeds from his day of primping were going straight back to the shelter.
Despite the chilly weather, residents of Secaucus and supporters from throughout the region turned out in force for Pet Spa Day at the shelter, an all-day fundraiser on Sunday, Feb. 8. “Business has been great,” said volunteer Carol Strulowitz, “There’s a line for grooming.”
In addition to nail trimming and grooming, animals could receive a waterless shampoo, winter paw pad treatment, ear cleaning, or teeth brushing. Services were provided by Sarah Kleespies, who brought her fully outfitted Sassy Styles van to the shelter and donated 100 percent of the proceeds to the facility.
“I like doing it,” she said. “It gives me a chance to give back to the animals. And I like doing anything to get the animals adopted. That’s the goal.”
Also contributing to the fundraiser was Gina-Matturo-Sasso of Union City, selling homemade dog treats with half the proceeds going to the shelter. Her company, Give a Dog a Bone, produces 10 varieties of organic treats. “My mom actually started this recipe, Grandma M’s, because her boxer has a very sensitive stomach,” said Matturo-Sasso. “I took it and I ran with it. Just trying to help, one dog at a time.”
“We stopped by to see what it’s all about,” said Weehawken resident Vinnie Camporeale, visiting with Nico, a highly energetic 2-year-old Yorkiepoo (Yorkshire Terrier and poodle mix) who seemed to spend more time in the air than with his feet on the ground.
Everybody wants puppies or kittens
“We’ve been busy all day with people coming down,” said Animal Control Officer Shannon Wisener. “People have been very interested in walking through, getting to know the place. A lot of people don’t know we’re here. It’s nice to raise awareness.”
Located at 525 Meadowlands Parkway, the Secaucus Animal Shelter currently holds a complement of very contented kitties and three rescued dogs. Brooklyn is a pit bull, a deeply misunderstood and feared breed. Hyatt was found tied up and abandoned in front of the Hyatt Hotel, hence his name. And French Lady, a 5 or 6-year-old French Mastiff, was found dumped on the streets of Secaucus after being used for breeding.
“I like doing anything to get the animals adopted. That’s the goal.” –Sarah Kleespies
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“Everybody wants puppies or kittens,” said Chris Conte, manager of the shelter. “They don’t want secondhand animals. They want to grow up with them. If they have children especially, they don’t want to take an older dog. Even 2 or 3-year-old dogs.”
To accommodate the interests of people wanting to adopt puppies, the shelter has been working with a rescue group from Louisiana. “They pull puppies out of kill shelters and put them in foster homes,” said Wisener. “They kind of caravan them up through the states, all volunteers doing this, and they drop them off at no-kill shelters on the way.”
“But what we also do when we do pull from another state is we fix the mommy and the daddy so those two particular animals cannot reproduce down there,” said Conte. “That’s an issue that most rescues don’t do. If we can, we bring them up and get them adopted. But sometimes they’re not adoptable. Sometimes they’re just wild dogs running around. At least we pay to make sure that they don’t reproduce. Which is very important.”
The shelter has also mounted an aggressive TNR (trap, neuter, release) program for cats in Secaucus. “Last year most shelters were inundated with kittens,” said Conte. “We have very few kittens. We helped out other rescue groups with their kittens.”
The town has been very supportive of the program, and vice versa. “They see all the difference we’ve made in the TNR program,” said Conte.
With only a limited number of cages, “We don’t have a crazy amount of space so we work with what we can, because we always have to remain open for the town of Secaucus,” said Wisener. “We always have to keep a few cages open because we could have anything happen here.”
Bringing the groomer to the pet
The shelter workers are not the type to leave their work at the office. Wisener adopted one of the dogs from Louisiana last year. Brooklyn, the pit bull, will be adopted by shelter worker Adam. And Conte took home Emily after the cat’s previous owner suffered a heart attack.
And now, lucky Emily was back for her day of indulgence at the pet spa.
“Grooming is my passion,” said Kleespies, taking a momentary break in her van. “We do cats and dogs, which is rare, because most people don’t usually do cats anymore.”
Kleespies began grooming about 11 years ago, working at different veterinarians, kennels, and grooming shops. Most recently she worked for a company out of Lyndhurst, running their only mobile grooming van. When the owner offered Kleespies the opportunity to buy the van, Sassy Styles was born, two years ago this May.
Based out of Rutherford, she travels to five counties, including Hudson, bringing her services to the pets. “Give me a call or email and I come to them,” she said. “I do everything right in here. We’ve got heat, air conditioning, hot water, electric. We’re powered by a generator and a propane tank. There’s a tub in here.”
The most popular items on Pet Spa Day were nail clipping and ear cleaning, according to Kleespies. “So far, we’re not even done yet and we made over $700 for the shelter,” she said. “I try to do as much as possible with the local shelters and the rescues. This is my first event with Secaucus. It’s going really well. I told them I would do this again whenever they wanted. They said they’re going to be doing more events in the spring and summer.”
The Secaucus Animal Shelter always accepts donations, including food and PetSmart gift cards. “We are a 501(c) so that’s officially tax deductible,” said Conte. “And that money goes strictly for the animals. It does not run the shelter facility. It doesn’t go for computers or things like that. That goes to either medical for an animal or rescue of an animal.”
The Secaucus Animal Shelter can be reached at sasnj.org. Give a Dog a Bone is at giveadogabone.biz.
Art Schwartz may be reached at arts@hudsonreporter.com.