Our Story

Acquires two lots and a house in Port Washington; begins planning shelter construction.

As Long Island grows, the Association must choose between handling animal control and remaining no-kill. It chooses no-kill. As a result, it loses lucrative animal control contracts and suffers a serious drop in revenue.

Elisabeth Lewyt begins driving her “Love-A-Pet” van from pound to pound to rescue pets, paying $12 a piece for each dog the pounds will release.

Humanely relocates animals from the ASPCA in New York City and other municipal shelters on Long Island to the safety of its no-kill shelter.

Elisabeth Lewyt’s Pound Rescue Team grows from one volunteer to dozens, saving thousands of animals from municipal shelters.

Celebrates grand opening of new adoption center and Alex Lewyt Veterinary Medical Center. Launches nationwide National Shelter Relocation Program, the first to work with overcrowded shelters in the South, welcoming animals slated for euthanasia. Today this program is widely imitated, saving hundreds of thousands of lives.

J. John Stevenson becomes President.

Develops Seniors for Seniors Program, which enables senior citizens to adopt well-matched senior pets, with some veterinary costs covered.

Establishes monthly donation Sponsor Program, providing ongoing care for special-needs animals.

Uses new Mobile Adoption Unit. to pioneer two off-site adoption programs: Mobile Adoption Program (MAP), which transports our pets to high-traffic areas, leading to countless adoptions; and Cooperative Adoption Program (CAP), through which we share our mobile units with small rescue groups and shelter partners, saving even more lives.

Purina begins its support by donating food and litter needed for all pets in the Adoption Center.

Laura J. Niles Foundation donates funding for second mobile adoption unit.

Volunteer Beth Stern becomes official spokesperson, raising our profile and generating countless rescues and adoptions.

Emergency Rescue Team is one of the first agencies on site to assist local shelters after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. League subsequently creates the Katrina Animal Rescue Fund.

Our Pet Savers Foundation partners with Yale University School of the 21st Century and the Cesar Millan Foundation to develop and pilot test the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum, a groundbreaking Prek-Grade 12 program that links humane education and social and emotional learning

Emergency Rescue Team responds to hurricanes Gustav and Ike along the Gulf Coast. League brings more than 100 dogs to safety from a West Virginia puppy mill.

Beth Stern runs the ING NYC Marathon, raising nearly $300,000 for the League.

The Freed Foundation (Elizabeth Freed) donates a much-needed new Mobile Adoption Unit, which Elizabeth dubs “Ziggy’s Truck” in honor of her beloved Jack Russell Terrier whom she adopted from Animal League America.

Elisabeth Lewyt, an early leader with her husband, dies at age 99.

Emergency Response Team goes to Moore, Okla., following EF5 tornadoes, to work with local groups rescuing pets displaced by the storms.

Our National Spokesperson Beth Stern begins her amazing career as a volunteer foster parent.

We celebrate 70 years as the leader of the no-kill shelter movement.

Pet Adoptathon® 2014 places more than 30,000 animals in loving homes around the world.

Ribbon cutting for new mobile unit donated by Rachael Ray’s rescue group, Rachael’s Rescue, brings the number of rescue units to seven.

The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum introduces Cats Are Mutt-i-grees 2, broadening the scope of this popular humane education program.

The Curriculum introduces the Mutt-i-grees National Student Ambassadors Program to recognize caring student advocates and to encourage more students to work for shelter pets across the country.

Launch of the North Country Initiative (NCI) in upstate New York. Program takes multi-pronged, no-kill, sustainable approach to feline overpopulation in the region.

We announce the addition of the word Educate to our mission — Rescue, Nurture, Adopt, Educate — in recognition of our commitment to humane education and the evolution of the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum.

Our 21st annual Global Pet Adoptathon generates more than 25,000 adoptions worldwide, including 481 during our 36-hour kickoff weekend at our Long Island Adoption Center.

The Curriculum forges a new relationship with the New York Public Library and its 92 locations throughout the city.

Launched in 2010, the Mutt-i-grees School Dog Programs expands to include 42 schools in the New York City public school system. Schools in Arkansas, New Jersey, Connecticut, and many other states have also introduced School Dogs.

Kitten Bowl III reaches more than 1.3 million “furball” fans, thanks to Volunteer, Foster Parent, and National Spokesperson Beth Stern and our friends at Hallmark Channel. Kitten Bowl Parties at shelters across the country lead to many adoptions. Hallmark also broadcasts Kitten Summer Games, reaching a huge audience.

Global Pet Adoptathon reaches all 50 states and every continent in the world — except Antarctica! — to generate an amazing 39,658 adoptions.

The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum is selected as one of 100 most innovative educational programs globally by HundrED. It is named as one of the 25 best social and emotional learning programs in the country by Harvard University and the Wallace Foundation.

A groundbreaking ceremony for Bianca’s Furry Friends Feline Adoption Center marks the start of construction.

Sound the trumpets: Our Facebook followers reach the one million mark!

The Alex Lewyt Veterinary Medical Center, the Freed Special Recovery Center, and the Karen and Don LaRocca Pet Wellness Center are re-branded as the Pet Health Centers at North Shore Animal League America.

The Mutt-i-grees At Home handbook is published, highlighting ways parents can promote empathy and raise awareness of shelter pets. Disseminated to parents and families, the handbook is also used by state agencies and child and family services.

Launch of a redesigned website reflecting the growth of the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum and its potential as a global initiative.