The animal shelter: once a long time ago it was called the dog pound, and cartoonish images of dog catchers being outsmarted by cigar-chomping pooches immediately come to mind. But unlike the cartoons of yesteryear, a lost or shelter-bound pet is nothing to smile about.

Roughly 600 nabbed dogs and cats find their way to the Town of Oyster Bay's Animal Shelter, a 50-year fixture in Syosset, which in many ways has become the Town's pet-equivalent of Sing Sing, but with some eminencies. Many dogs and cats are picked up loose, some are strays, and others are brought in by the owners themselves, because either the animal is vicious or for other reasons. But the sad reality is that most of these pets are simply lost. "I wonder how a dog could be lost without somebody knowing," said Animal Shelter Director Charles Yodice of Massapequa. "Pet ownership with responsibility is what we stress."

Licensing a dog or cat is the first step to becoming a responsible pet owner. When a lost, but registered pet is found by Animal Control ¬ the strong arm of dog and cat law ¬ reunification with a distraught owner is a much simpler task. But if for some unknown reason reunification is not in the cards, the shelter will hold the lost pet for 12 days before being placed for adoption.

This is not the case for animals without their proper identification; lost dogs and cats without their tags are given a seven-day furlough, and when the week is up, the animal is placed for adoption. But in all cases, the shelter hopes the pet's rightful owner comes in to claim his animal, said Yodice.

Dogs and cats of all breeds, sizes and age fill the shelter's pens and cages. There are 65 cages reserved for dogs and 40 for cats, said Yodice, but despite its space, the shelter has rarely hung its 'no-vacancy' sign.

Would-be pet owners do make their way to the shelter looking to adopt. There are kittens and puppies, dogs and cats to choose from. A browser has a choice among pure-breeds, such as Labradors and Dobermans, or exotic breeds such as Shar-Peis and Alaska Whites, which turn up time to time. Mongrels, or the "Heinz 57 Variety," as called by Yodice, are also on hand and very often make the best pets, he said.

And to avoid an inevitable prison turf war, cats are provided with their own shelter suite, far from the dog-sector ruckus, which could get quite loud on a visitor's arrival.

The animals are given comfortable digs, even if it's their final hour. (OOPS, more on that in a moment.) In 1989, the shelter underwent massive plastic surgery and the result was a state-of-the-art facility, complete with a kennel air-exchange filtration ¬ which benefited a certain visiting reporter ¬ plus a medical room and skylights. The Town also contracts a multi-weekly visiting veterinarian to maintain optimum animal health. Room service consists of two meals a day.

Dogs are placed inside kennels, designed to give the hounds the option of being in or outdoors. There is also a dog run, and the shelter staff keep busy with grooming, treating minor wounds, and other dog-care responsibilities. "You really have to like animals to do this," said Yodice, who's been director for 18 years.

But sadly many are euthanized because they are vicious or non-adoptable. Cats, for instance, are unadoptable if they are from the wild. A dog with a serious mean streak is also deemed unfit for adoption and will be destroyed, too. Adoptable animals are kept at the shelter for as long as possible, but they also receive the sentence after a liberal time-lapse. "Sometimes it's just as cruel to keep a dog caged for so long," said Yodice.

Euthanizing animals is a last resort for the shelter, which vigorously educates the public about pet adoption and responsibility. Through groups like Pioneers of Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) and other groups, special adoption days are held when the public is invited to 'open house' at the shelter. However, a visitor can stop by anytime the shelter is open. "It was an idea because most people don't know about the animal shelter," said Yodice.

Just recently, the animal shelter joined 'Pet Safe,' sponsored by the Red Cross. The program provides free space, food and care to pets during natural disasters, such as hurricanes and other severe storms. The Syosset-based shelter is the perfect location for this program, because the structure sits on a higher elevation ¬ at least compared to pancake-flat Long Island.

A higher elevation indeed ¬ exactly where the owners of shelter-adopted pets sit.