More Pets Than Ever Being Dropped At Hillsborough Rescues

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — Two Hillsborough pet rescue groups are in need of help now more than ever due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Hope Valenti is a huge animal lover who runs Amwell Pet Supply at 434 Route 206 in Hillsborough where she also helps CAPIC Cat Rescue and Amwell Animal Rescue Group (AARG).

Run entirely by volunteers, AARG's mission is to rescue, care for, and rehome unwanted and homeless pets. CAPIC Cats is also entirely volunteer-run and is a 501C3 accredited charity and helps local residents with the feral/free-roaming cat problem.

Valenti, President of AARG, has always reached into her own pockets to keep the rescues going but she is hurting amid the pandemic. She needs more help for the animals.

"More people are dumping animals here than I have ever seen in my life," said Valenti. "People either can't afford them or don't want them. ... It's been really hard."

Valenti is looking for volunteers and donations to keep the rescues afloat.

"We have been down volunteers since most of our volunteers were in their 70s," said Valenti. "We don't really want them coming here every day if they could get sick. … We are kind of hurting and I have to do a lot of the work myself."

Volunteers needed must be over 18 to help with cleaning rescue animal cages for guinea pigs, rabbits, kittens, cats, and general cleanup. The hours would be 9:30 to 11 a.m. for cats and anytime for other animals.

Volunteers must be allergy-free, love animals, and have the ability to follow instructions. The shop is open 7 days a week, but volunteers can opt to help as many or few days as they choose.

Additionally, the rescue groups are in need of paper towels, Dawn blue liquid dish soap, white kitchen garbage bags, and new light fleece blankets for cages.

"Pretty much the supplies come out of my pocket. I have been doing it for 8 years but it is unbelievable the amount of supplies we go through for all of the animals," Valenti said.

Those interested in volunteering or donating can call 908-359-5117, email aargnj@gmail.com, or visit amwellanimalrescue.com. Monetary donations are also accepted and can be made to AARG's Paypal at paypal.me/aargnj.

This story is part of Patch's Headlining Hope series, which profiles local nonprofits and charitable organizations in need of volunteers and resources. If you know about a local organization that should be profiled, contact alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.