You are reading

Council Member Holden Calls for Creation of Animal Welfare Council Committee

Council Member Robert Holden and Rocky, his office cat (Council Member Robert Holden’s office)

Jan. 20, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Queens Council Member Robert Holden is calling on the City Council to establish a committee to protect New Yorkers’ furry friends.

Holden, who represents Middle Village, Maspeth, Glendale, Ridgewood, Woodside and Woodhaven in the City Council, penned a letter Tuesday to Speaker Corey Johnson to call for the creation of a committee on animal welfare.

Matters of animal welfare currently fall under the jurisdiction of the City Council’s Committee on Health, but Holden argued that the committee’s focus is too broad.

He wants the Council to create a committee solely dedicated to protecting animals.

“While our city and country navigate the difficulties resulting from the novel coronavirus and the economic crisis, our animals have also suffered,” Holden wrote to Johnson.

He said the animal rights issues have often been forgotten even before COVID-19.

“Even before the pandemic, animal welfare-related policy had fallen by the wayside,” Holden wrote. “Therefore, I believe it is time that we have a standalone committee for animals.”

The council member is a longtime animal advocate and has a cat named Rocky as his official district office mascot. Rocky, who was adopted from a local Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC) shelter, even has his own Twitter account.

Holden also sent a letter to the CEO of ACC on Tuesday asking the animal shelter to bring back adoption events that it has suspended due to COVID-19.

“I ask that you reconsider your policy on not hosting adoption events and instead develop a strategy that helps give these animals a new home while keeping your staff safe,” he wrote.

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

South Jamaica man murdered in broad daylight a few doors away from his home: NYPD

A South Jamaica man was stabbed to death in front of his neighbor’s home just down the block from his own house near Baisley Pond Park in broad daylight during the afternoon of Saturday, Aug. 16.

Police from the 113th Precinct in Jamaica responded to a 911 call of a man stabbed in front of 150-16 119th Ave. at 4:10 p.m. Upon arrival, the officers found the 43-year-old victim lying at the curb with a stab wound to his chest. EMS responded to the location and rushed him to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition. He succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead a short while later, police said.

Suspect wanted for flashing woman multiple times while riding R train in Astoria: NYPD

Police from the 114th Precinct in Astoria and Transit District 20 are looking for a flasher who exposed himself repeatedly to a woman on board a northbound R train in Astoria on Sunday, Aug. 17.

The suspect sat across from the 34-year-old victim at around 12:50 p.m. as the subway was in the vicinity of Steinway Street and 34th Avenue and showed her his genitals multiple times, police said. The suspect zipped up and got off the train at the station and ran off on foot in an unknown direction. The woman was not injured during the encounter.

US Open returns to Flushing Meadows as most competitive and unpredictable major in tennis

Aug. 19, 2025 By Shane O’Brien

Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka  ensured the 2024 men’s and women’s US Open went with the formbook, with both favorites romping to victory at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center last September, but recent history suggests that Sinner and Sabalenka – undoubtedly the two best hardcourt players in the world – will struggle to retain their crowns this year.