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Believe it or not, Queens, a borough that over two million people call home, didn't have a public animal shelter until today. Twenty years after construction plans began, a brand new 50,000-square-foot state-of-the-art animal shelter just opened in Ridgewood.
The Ridgewood Animal Care Centers location is located at 1906 Flushing Avenue and can house 72 dogs and 110 cats at a time, according to The City. There's also an area dedicated to keeping smaller pets like guinea pigs and another featuring grass for rabbits.
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The new shelter is part of the Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC), an organization that already has locations across Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island. The ACC is also known for its pop-up adoption trucks, which tend to attract long lines.
The animal shelter system in New York is currently experiencing a serious overcrowding problem, partially a result of people giving up their pandemic-era pets, according to The City. The $75 million city-funded shelter will help lessen the burden of the already strained shelter in Manhattan, especially following the temporary closure of the ACC's Brooklyn location for renovations, which are set to be completed by 2026. The ACC plans to open even more shelters across the city in the next few years.
The new Ridgewood shelter looks pretty impressive, like a boujee boarding school for animals.
The space features an area with glass kennels covered by a retractable glass roof, allowing dogs to get some sun and fresh air, weather permitting. There's also a spacious dog run with faux grass on the facility's roof and services like adoption counseling and, eventually, vet services, according to Gothamist.
If you can't adopt now but would like to get involved, the shelter is currently looking for people to help staff the new Queens shelter.
The Queens shelter will be open for adoptions Monday through Friday from 12pm until 6pm and Saturdays and Sundays from 11am until 5pm. You can visit the shelter's website for more information and to take a look at some of the cuties up for adoption right now.