It’s been 16 long months now since Hurricane Katrina first wreaked its
havoc on hundreds of miles of America’s Gulf Coast. And who can ever
forget the horrific images of this massive deadly storm that we all saw on
our television screens in August 2005.
Both human beings and their pets desperately swimming for their lives;
being stranded on rooftops; clinging to trees; being swept away into the
sea; being trapped in flooded areas with no food or water – being ‘left
behind’ to somehow fend for themselves – for far too long.
When our government was far too slow in responding to this massive
tragedy, dozens of national rescue organizations and thousands of
compassionate volunteers quickly sprang into action - from all parts of
the world - to rush aid and relief to both these human and these nonhuman
victims of one of the worst disasters in American history.
And, thousands of American citizens quickly opened their hearts and their
homes and their checkbooks to assist in these massive rescue and
re-location efforts.
And thanks to the compassion and generosity of America’s citizens,
thousands of people from the devastated Gulf Coast were eventually rescued
and re-located to safe havens all across the country; and thousands of
their left behind animals were eventually rescued, cared for, re-united
with their owners, re-located to animal shelters all across the U.S., and
adopted out to new loving homes as well.
By January of 2006, five months after the storm, most believed that the
worst of Hurricane Katrina was finally over. There was now great hope
that the once great city of New Orleans, and the rest of the devastated
Gulf Coast, would now quickly rise from the muddy rubble, and that life on
the Gulf Coast would now quickly move on and return to normal.
Most now believed that the residents of New Orleans and the rest of the
Gulf Coast would now flock back to their homes, and very quickly re-build
both their lives and their devastated cities.
Most also believed that the majority of left behind pets had finally been
rescued, and that quickly endorsed national legislation would ensure that
in any future disasters, our beloved pets would never be left behind
again.
By January of 2006, the national media, most of the national rescue
organizations, and the hearts and minds of most Americans, now moved on to
other news stories, and to other devastating disasters happening all
around the globe.
But the very sad reality is that not very much has changed in the areas
hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina – sixteen months after it first roared
ashore.
Much of the destroyed infrastructure on the Gulf Coast has still not been
restored; entire areas are still uninhabitable without electrical power or
fresh water; and the vast majority of people who lost everything in
Katrina are still living in government provided trailers on the Gulf
Coast, or they have completely abandoned all hope of ever re-building
their Gulf Coast homes, and are now building new lives – in new cities and
towns all across America.
And very sadly, many of these former Gulf Coast residents who desperately
spent months trying to find their lost, left behind pets after Hurricane
Katrina, are now finding themselves having to once again give up their
beloved re-united pets because life in a tiny cramped FEMA trailer or in a
new apartment building in a distant city doesn’t readily lend itself to
keeping them.
And what of the thousands of dogs and cats that remained traumatized and
in hiding after Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast that were never
rescued?
The very sad reality is that most of these left behind pets were never
spayed or neutered prior to Hurricane Katrina, and now, sixteen long
months later, they and their countless offspring are still wandering
aimlessly through completely devastated and abandoned areas of the Gulf
Coast – and they are still desperately searching for food and water to
survive yet one more day.
And, very sadly, sixteen months after Katrina, life for these now feral
dogs and cats and their countless offspring, is still extremely cruel.
They are chased, poisoned, and shot at; they are callously run down in the
streets; they are trapped and whisked off to death chambers in local
animal pounds; and their only available shelter in abandoned buildings and
homes all along the Gulf Coast is slowly being bull-dozed and leveled all
around them.
But thankfully, a few animal rescue organizations, and a few extremely
caring individuals, have not given up on them – sixteen long grueling
months after Hurricane Katrina first arrived.
These groups and individuals are still very compassionately spending their
time and their money manning and filling food and water stations for these
animals all along the Gulf Coast; and they are still humanely trapping
these now feral dogs and cats; still desperately trying to spay and neuter
as many of them as they possibly can; and still very compassionately
attempting to find new homes for as many of them as possible.
Without these few remaining dedicated animal rescue groups and extremely
dedicated and compassionate individuals – there would be no hope at all
for these thousands of pathetic, starving, free roaming, abandoned ‘left
behind’ dogs and cats and their now countless offspring.
Did the national media forget about our devastated Gulf Coast and the
plight of its homeless residents far too soon? Did our government? Did
most of the national rescue organizations give up on all of these left
behind animals far too soon? Did most of we rescue volunteers leave the
Gulf Coast too soon? Did most of we Americans close our hearts and our
checkbooks much too soon?
I believe the answer to all of these questions is - Yes. But there is
still time for all of us to help them, if we choose to do so.
Organizations like the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army,
and Habitat for Humanity are still helping Katrina’s human
victims, and they can always use more donations and more volunteers.
And a few animal rescue organizations are still valiantly operating on the
Gulf Coast; and they are still in dire need of funds and food and
volunteers to enable them to continue in their compassionate efforts to
save as many of these animals as possible.
Two of the animal rescue organizations that I am familiar with are
Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO) and PAWS Chicago. I’m
sure there are others, but I’d like to highlight what these two dedicated
groups are still doing today, and how we can all help them in their
extremely compassionate efforts on behalf of Gulf Coast pets.
A Plea from ARNO
Dear Friends,
The animal crisis in New Orleans still exists today, sixteen months
after Hurricane Katrina.
And Animal Rescue New Orleans, (ARNO), is still trying to feed
thousands of animals left behind on the streets. These animals are
forgotten, but not gone.
Volunteers today still fill the numerous food and water stations that
make it possible for these dogs and cats to continue to survive. And many
of these animals were once loved pets that now live in constant danger of
starvation, attacks by other animals, and illness.
The devastation wreaked by Hurricane Katrina continues today for miles
and miles along the devastated Gulf Coast, and there are still thousands
of hungry, homeless, injured animals in grave need. New Orleans residents
are still trying to rebuild their homes and their lives, and in some of
the hardest hit areas, less than 10 percent of the residents have
returned.
ARNO desperately needs your help. Please look at the requests below,
and if you are able to offer ANY assistance at all, your help will be
GREATLY appreciated:
Housing and Transportation
-
ARNO is still working extremely hard to eventually end this ongoing
animal crisis through fosters, adoptions, and a spay/neuter program. In
the meantime, whatever you can offer will be gratefully accepted on behalf
of the many homeless animals that are still extremely vulnerable, and that
are still in desperate need of help day after day.
Please help ARNO to help these pets, who have now struggled far too
long.
Thank you for all that you have already done for our Gulf Coast
animals, and thank you in advance for any aid that you can now offer.
With heartfelt gratitude,
ARNO Volunteers
(If you can help in any way, please respond directly to ARNO, using the
contact website and telephone information provided above.)
PAWS Chicago
Waveland, Mississippi, a 45 minute drive from New Orleans, was also
completely devastated by Hurricane Katrina, and many of its animals
quickly drowned at its flooded local animal shelter.
Waveland City Clerk Robin Gavagnie commented: “Before the storm, we had a
bad animal problem, but after the storm, it got much worse.”
Waveland had been killing approximately 75 percent of its unwanted
animals, but since Katrina, the number is much closer to 99 percent.
With half the human population leaving the area before the storm, and many
of those remaining still living in FEMA trailers, there is still
tremendous need in the area.
According to the City Clerk, “The whole town lost its infrastructure.
We’ve still got to redo water, gas, and sewer.”
And as a result, there are very few animal adoptions occurring, so the
many homeless left behind Katrina pets in Waveland had very little chance
of continued survival unless a rescue organization once again stepped
forward.
And, thankfully, PAWS Chicago did just that.
“The devastation in this part of the Gulf Coast is tragic," said PAWS
Chicago founder Paula Fasseas, who took part in a recent rescue trip to
Waveland.
"People in this community lost everything -- their homes, their cars, and
their lives as they knew them. In these dire circumstances, pets are being
surrendered to the local shelter and abandoned on the streets. There are
absolutely no adoption possibilities for these helpless creatures in
Hancock County, so we’ve brought many of them back to Chicago to save
their lives."
Over 200 homeless dogs and cats from Waveland, Mississippi were soon
transported to PAWS Chicago, where they are being cared for, and where
they are being adopted out to new loving homes.
But with so much pet overpopulation today – all across the United States –
PAWS Chicago soon began worrying that transporting more and more of these
animals from the South would mean more death for the many homeless dogs
and cats in the Chicagoland area and in other parts of the country.
So, they soon came up with another idea to help the left behind pets of
Waveland, Mississippi.
Seventeen of their volunteers traveled back to Waveland this past
September offering free spay/neuter services to any and all pets of any
and all residents of Hancock County, one of the three devastated Gulf
Coast counties in Mississippi.
And the local response was tremendous.
Soon, 280 pets were spayed or neutered, and more than 500 animals remained
on a rapidly expanding waiting list.
PAWS Chicago now plans to continue its spay/neuter efforts in Waveland,
and in surrounding Hancock County, and now plans even more large
spay/neuter clinics three to four times a year.
And with sustained effort by local veterinarians, it is now hoped that the
vast overpopulation of dogs and cats in this area can be greatly reduced,
and eventually, eliminated.
To learn how you can assist in this ongoing effort to help Katrina’s pet
victims in Mississippi, please visit the PAWS website at:
http://www.pawschicago.org/ReturningtoKatrina2.htm
Or you can mail a monetary contribution to:
PAWS Chicago
Mississippi Fund
1110 W. 35th Street
Chicago, IL 60609
These are just two of the animal organizations that are still valiantly
trying to assist Katrina’s animal victims, and I am sure there are more of
them out there that still need our assistance.
There are also numerous animal shelters and humane societies spread all
across America that are still housing many of these rescued Katrina pets –
sixteen long months after the fact.
And these rescued Katrina animals truly yearn for another loving home, and
a return to some sort of normalcy in their lives – something that was so
quickly taken away from them – sixteen long months ago – when a life
disrupting monster known as Hurricane Katrina – horribly changed their
lives forever.
Please consider helping the two animal organizations listed above, and/or
please contact animal shelters and humane societies in your local area to
find out if they still have any ongoing Katrina pet rescue operations in
place, and to find out if they still have any left behind dogs and cats in
their care – left behind dogs and cats that are still desperately yearning
for a new home.
