By Allison Perrine
MONMOUTH COUNTY – Helping animals find loving and happy homes is what the Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MCSPCA) is all about. And now, the nonprofit is doing the same for police departments.
Through a new pilot program, the MCSCPA adopts out shelter dogs to police departments to serve as emotional support animals for the officers – free of charge. So far, Eatontown and Neptune City police departments have taken advantage of the program, and MCSPCA executive director Ross Licitra anticipates more will follow suit.
“We all grew up seeing the notion, back in the day, when there was a dog at the fire headquarters, like in the city, the dalmatian, and it rode on the fire trucks with all the guys and everyone collectively took care of it,” said Licitra. “This is purely a pet for the stationhouse that everybody could just love.”
According to Licitra, a former police officer for 30-plus years who also serves on the county board of commissioners, the idea for the program was born out of a casual conversation on a night out with friends. He and others were talking about resilience training and what could be done for local police officers, noting that some calls on the job can be stressful, hostile or emotional. Science has proven the positive effect of therapy dogs and this program could work in a similar way, he said.
“When we bring dogs to the hospitals and we bring them to nursing homes, we see what it does to patients,” said Licitra. “It’s a homeless dog that needs to be someplace but also could work as a therapy dog for the officers.”
Eatontown became the first police department to participate in the program with the adoption of Tala, a purebred husky, in January. Neptune City become the second with the adoption of a 6-year-old dog named Luke April 14, who was transferred to the MCSPCA from an overcrowded shelter in December 2020. His “calm and gentle demeanor” made him a perfect match for the placement program, according to the MCSPCA.
“It’s been a tough time for everyone, including our officers. We’re human beings and have bad days, too, so Luke brings us joy and comfort when we need it most,” said Matt Quagliato, chief of the Neptune City Police Department. “Being that Luke is over 6 years old, which sometimes makes dogs harder to adopt, we’re happy that our station family could take him and give him love and be loved in return. He really is a ray of sunshine.”
Dogs in the program are not trained police canines, like those that sniff out drugs or explosives. Potential adoptees first undergo a behavioral assessment – as all dogs do when they arrive at the MCSPCA – and staff members identify candidates that have good personalities and seem docile.
“We don’t want to put a very frightened dog in a police station,” said Licitra. “There’s always a lot of activity going on in a police station for the most part.”
Each department that receives a dog has one specific adopter. For Luke, that person is Neptune City Patrol Officer Matt Edwards. He noted that ever since the department got Luke, he’s brought “nothing but joy” to everyone at the station.
“Every time we walk into headquarters, you can hear Luke shaking out his fur, see his tail wagging and you can’t help but smile and start playing with him,” he said. “While inside, he loves to hang out and follow you around, and when we take him on walks, he treats it like a new adventure and greets everyone he sees. We are so thankful and lucky to have adopted Luke.”
For more information on the program, email info@monmouthcountyspca.org or call 732-542-0040, ext. 7.
The article originally appeared in the April 29 – May 5, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
