Pet Friendly, Kid Friendly and New Acts added to the LI Pet Expo this year! From March 6th- 8th, The Long Island Pet Expo returns at Suffolk Community College. Attendees can expect to be wowed with high-flying dogs, cats doing agility, exotic animals, rain forest reptile show, petting zoo, adoptable pets and many new additional features. This year, pet parents are invited to bring their own “fur kids” to the three-day expo as well, so load your well-behaved baby piglet, crocodile, llama, or lizard into passenger seat and head over to this real life Noah’s Ark.

“Last year we tested out the ‘pet hours’ at our Long Island expo, and it was a great success with a lot of happy pet parents and many wagging tails! This year we decided to allow people that want to bring their pets any time during the show,” says Dennis Garetano, co-owner of Family Pet Shows who host the Long Island Pet Expo. “People want to bring their pets with them to experience the event together, and shop for their favorite pet toys or treats at our many vendors.”

Family Pet Shows, formerly known as The Horse and Pet Expo, is a family owned and operated company run by Karen and Dennis Garetano and their son Joe Garetano. In 1994, after years of publishing Horseworld USA magazine, the Garetanos hosted a horse expo in Pennsylvania and held their first show in 1994 Fort Washington, PA.  After two years of successfully hosting the first horse expo, they expanded the show to include other pets and changed the name to Horse and Pet Expo and began adding new locations. The company now hosts seven different pet expos annually in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania drawing in crowds of thousands of pet lovers to each of their shows.

In addition, there are new pet entertaining acts and features added to this years show.  Features this year include: ·      New! FULL time Pet Hours – Last year LI Pet Expo introduced special pet hours at the expo, and this year, you can bring your well-behaved pet any time during the pet expo! Woof! ·      New! Double Dutch Dancing Dogs – Ever see a dog skip rope, balance on his owners feet, Frisbee flying catches and incredible obstacle high jumps? Combine that with Diana Frohman’s dancing dogs and this combo show will leave the crowds cheering for more! ·      New! Weight Pull Demos! – Doggie U K9 Academy, the only dog training facility on LI that offers weight pulling for dogs will be at the expo doing demos of this sport. Dogs of all sizes can do weight pulling! ·      Rainforest Reptile Show – an exciting, fascinating adventure through the rare and endangered reptile world! Many exotic reptiles will be at the show. ·      Cat agility – can you picture it? Cats speeding through an agility course to get the best time? Ok, so some take their sweet time – and other cats go right through the course – a sight to be seen. ·      Adoptable Pets – many local Long Island rescue groups will be there with adoptable pets.  Perfect time to find a furry new friend to add to your family.

The pet expo is expected to bring over 12,000 of people throughout the weekend and features pet vendors offering many pet items and supplies for sale, lots of fun, unique and educational entertainment programs, and many pet professionals from right here on Long Island and from around the country.  From Alpaca’s, Alligators, Parrots, dogs and cats to local exotic wildlife found right here on Long Island – the pet expo has it all under one roof.

Dennis and Karen Garetano also allow animal rescue groups that are official non-for-profit organizations to have a free space at the event – offering the public information, education on responsible pet ownership and even have adoptable pets on site.  Potential pet owners or those looking to add another pet to their family are encouraged to visit the Adoption Area at the expo as many of Long Island’s homeless pets will be available for adoption.

Any owned pets brought to the show must leashed, well-behaved and up to date on vaccinations and their owners must fill out a waiver upon arrival at the show. Attendees can also participate with their purebred dogs in the Parade of Breeds taking place on Saturday and NEW this year – Best Dog Trick Contest taking place on Sunday. To participate in either the Parade of Breeds or Best Dog Trick Contest attendees can call (631) 423-0620 or email Karen@FamilyPetShows.com to register.

Event Location & Details: Suffolk Community College 1001 Crooked Hill Road (Exit 53 off LIE) Brentwood, NY 11717 When: Friday, March 6, 2015 from 4pm to 9pm Weekend dates: Saturday, March 7, 2015, 10am – 7pm Sunday, March 8, 2015, 10am – 5pm   Ticket prices are $12 for adults; $5 for children 11 and under (accept Friday night) and kids 3 and under free. Friday night is ‘Family Night’ where kids 12 and under are admitted for free!  For more information about the Long Island Pet Expo go to www.FamilyPetShows.com or call (631) 423-0620.  There is also limited vendor space left contact them today for more info.  Any owned pets brought during ‘Pet Hours’ owners must fill out a waiver, and their pets must be leashed, well behaved and up to date on vaccinations.  Owned pets are now allowed during all hours of the show.

*Photos in this feature by American Pet Professionals