Demand that The Humane Society of New York (HSNY) Stop Warehousing Animals

The Humane Society of New York (HSNY), a prominent animal shelter in midtown Manhattan, closed its doors to the public in April 2020. Many of the animals housed in the shelter at that time had already been living there for months, and, in some cases, years.

In August 2021, whistleblowers at HSNY informed the local animal advocacy community that the shelter was warehousing approximately 90 animals while pretending to facilitate adoptions. An investigation by the animal rights group TheirTurn corroborated the whistleblower allegations and found the following:

1. HSNY lists just 15 of its 90 animals on its website.

2. HSNY does virtually no adoption promotion on social media.

3. HSNY ignores adoption applications submitted by qualified individuals.

4. HSNY has not replaced its Adoptions Director, who retired in early 2020.

Because HSNY neither publicizes the animals nor allows members of the public into the building to meet them, potential adopters don't even know that HSNY has animals who need homes. 

In response to an inquiry from TheirTurn, HSNY's Executive Director Sandra DeFeo claimed to be doing adoptions but argued that the animals are happy in the shelter: "The shelter is their foster home and their cages are like apartments."

Given its prime midtown location in Manhattan and its ample resources, HSNY should be facilitating several adoptions each week and freeing up cages for new animals. With very few adoptions being facilitated, however, the vast majority of the animals at HSNY will continue to be held in cages for the indefinite future instead of being sent to a loving home.

Until Ms. DeFeo re-opens the shelter to the public; posts on its website the 90 animals who need homes; and resumes adoptions in earnest, she and the Board of Directors of HSNY should relocate the animals to foster homes or bonafide adoption centers.