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NORTH FORK ANIMAL WELFARE LEAGUE

SOUTHOLD, NY · EIN 116024590 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE D200 · Animal-Related · Medium ($1M-$10M) · northforkanimalwelfareleague.org
revenue
$1.3M
expenses
$1.7M
net assets
$5.0M
employees
29
volunteers
222
program ratio
81%
mission · from form 990

OPERATE A NO KILL ANIMAL SHELTER

profile · synthesized from sources

Animal welfare organization operating no-kill shelters in Southold and Riverhead, New York. Provides shelter, veterinary care, and adoption services for dogs and cats, with programs focused on spay/neuter, humane education, and support for veterans. Founded in 1963 and manages municipal animal care contracts for two Long Island towns.

named programs · 4 · from sources

What they call their work

Feral Cat Spay and Neuter Program
Program focused on controlling feral cat populations through spay/neuter and return
Humane Education
Educational initiatives on responsible pet ownership, bite prevention, and animal welfare
Pets for Vets
Program that reduces adoption fees and supports veterans in adopting companion animals, requiring a doctor's letter confirming benefit from pet companionship
Spay and Neuter Clinics
Community clinics aimed at reducing unwanted animal births and promoting responsible pet ownership
activities · 7 groups

What they do

  • Rescue and Adoption of Cats 3 activities
    • Facilitate adoption of dogs and cats
      Operates adoption programs for dogs and cats through dedicated web pages and promotional resources, maintaining one of the highest adoption rates among municipal shelters in the U.S., with a return policy for adopted animals if placements fail.
    • Operate foster and dog sleepover programs
      Manages a foster program that places shelter animals in temporary homes on Long Island to reduce stress and improve adoption outcomes, including a dog sleepover program allowing short-term fostering for weekends or nights.
    • Operate no-kill animal shelter with open-door intake
      Operates a no-kill shelter with open-door intake for homeless dogs and cats at two physical locations in Southold and Riverhead, Long Island, providing immediate veterinary care, vaccinations, and full checkups for all incoming animals.
  • Structured Animal Adoption Program 1 activity
    • Conduct animal behavior and temperament evaluations
      Performs professional evaluation and temperament testing for all sheltered animals, a first among municipal shelters on Long Island, to support adoption readiness and placement safety.
  • Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Services 1 activity
    • Conduct spay/neuter and microchip clinics
      Provides spay/neuter services for all animals prior to adoption and operates public spay/neuter and microchip clinics, including programs for feral cats, to address pet overpopulation in the community.
  • Humane Education and Responsible Pet Ownership 1 activity
    • Deliver community education and outreach programs
      Conducts community educational clinics on humane education, bite prevention, dog training, and therapy dog visits to promote responsible pet ownership and animal welfare.
  • Pre-Adoption Veterinary Care for Shelter Animals 1 activity
    • Provide comprehensive veterinary care for shelter animals
      Delivers full veterinary services including spay/neuter surgery, vaccinations, parasite treatment, microchipping, heartworm treatment, and specialized medical care for conditions such as degenerative neurological disease and traumatic injuries.
  • Pet Food and Supply Pantry Services 1 activity
    • Provide pet retention support for community members in hardship
      Offers temporary assistance with dog or cat food through a pet food pantry and provides support services to help low-income residents and hospitalized individuals retain ownership of their pets.
  • Animal-Assisted Support Services 1 activity
    • Run Pets for Vets program for veterans and shelter animals
      Operates the “Pets for Vets” program that pairs shelter animals with veterans through reduced adoption fees and support services to promote emotional healing and companionship.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$1.28M
Contributions & grants$461K36%
Program service revenue$605K47%
Investment income$200K16%
Other revenue$17K
expenses
Total expenses$1.69M
Program expenses81%
Admin / overhead19%
Fundraising0%
Salaries & benefits$916K
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$5.09M
Cash$118K
Investments$1.76M
Liabilities$94K
Net assets$5.00M
Liquid reserves13.4 mo
3 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue -16.7%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

board members · 4
  • JOANN WASKI — TRUSTEE
  • KAREN HAGEN — SECRETARY
  • LESLIE BENWAY — PRESIDENT
  • PATTI SINCLAIR — TREASURER
relationships · 6

Who they work with

  • American Kennel Club Partner — Partners with the American Kennel Club for microchip registration of adopted animals.
  • Pets for Vets Partner — Collaborates on the "Pets for Vets" program to connect veterans with shelter animals.
  • Riverhead Town Government — Contracts with the League to operate its animal shelter program since 2013
  • Riverhead Town Government — Operates the Riverhead Animal Shelter as a municipal shelter.
  • Southold Town Government — Contracts with the League to operate Southold Animal Shelter since 1980
  • Southold Town Government — Operates the Southold Animal Shelter as a municipal shelter.
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Community Support Integration
    methodology: community-support-integration
    By extending services beyond shelter walls to include pet food assistance, spay/neuter access, and education, the organization strengthens community pet retention, because addressing root causes of surrender reduces intake and promotes humane treatment.
  • Companion Matching Through Behavioral Assessment
    methodology: behavioral_assessment_through_fostering
    By using foster sleepovers and in-person interactions to assess animal behavior and personality, the organization improves adoption success, because real-world behavioral data leads to better human-animal matches and long-term placement stability.
  • Extraordinary Medical Care Funding
    methodology: extraordinary_medical_care_funding
    By using dedicated funding to cover high-cost medical treatments, the organization enables life-saving interventions for shelter animals, because access to advanced care improves survival and adoptability of medically complex cases.
  • No-Kill Shelter Model
    methodology: no-kill_shelter_model
    By committing to a no-kill policy, the organization ensures animals are not euthanized due to space or time constraints, because this increases survival rates and reinforces the value of every animal's life within the shelter system.
  • Veteran-Animal Companionship Model
    methodology: veteran-animal_companionship
    By pairing shelter animals with veterans through reduced barriers and targeted support, the organization fosters mutual healing, because companionship addresses trauma and loneliness in veterans while increasing adoption opportunities for animals.