Dec. 3, 2024 By Shane O’Brien
Pet owners in Long Island City will have an opportunity to capture a festive snap with their furry friends this Sunday at Culture Lab LIC’s “Paw-liday Celebration”.
The event will take place indoors at Culture Lab, located at 5-25 46th Ave., between 2 and 5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8.
LIC-based vet Bond Vet is running the event in collaboration with Culture Lab, while Velvet Turtle Events will oversee the festive-themed photographs on Sunday. LIC Feral Feeders, a non-profit dedicated to the care of stray cats, will also be hosting a small cat adoption event at the celebration.
Dawn DeVito, director of events and marketing at Culture Lab, said the event is a continuation of Culture Lab’s “Pup-Up” events, a monthly series of dog-centric events featuring dog adoption services and dog companies that took place at Culture Lab over the summer.
Sunday’s event has been expanded to include cats, with plans to include cats in next year’s Pup-Up events.
“We do a lot of dog-heavy stuff, and we don’t want to forget about the cats,” DeVito said.
She said Feral Feeders’ adoptable cats will be kept out of view of dogs participating in the festive photographs to avoid stressing the cats. DeVito also encouraged cat owners interested in taking holiday-themed snaps with their feline companions to ensure that their cats are comfortable in a busy environment.
Sunday’s event will also feature a coffee cart serving a variety of festive-themed drinks, including hot chocolate and apple cider, while there will also be raffle prizes on the day.
DeVito said she hopes the event will help showcase that Culture Lab is a pet-friendly community space for everyone in the neighborhood.
“We always like to promote that we’re animal- and dog-friendly, so we’d like to see everybody coming by and checking out the gallery with their pup and taking a photo. It’s always fun.”
DeVito additionally believes that pet-themed events can be an excellent social mixer for like-minded people in the local area.
“I’ve heard from people that were at all the dog events this summer who said they met other people in the area with dogs,” DeVito said. “It’s a great way to meet people from the community that you might not have known, and they also have dogs.”
Around 100 people have RSVP’d for Sunday’s event, while DeVito expects hundreds more to show up on the day. Culture Lab’s summer Pup-Up events regularly draw hundreds of visitors every month. Click here to reserve a spot.