Update October 31, 2005


Hurricane Relief Update October 31, 2005

I departed for Waveland, Mississippi on Saturday, October 22. In tow was 2,000 pounds of dog and cat food and litter generously donated by businesses in the Tidewater, Virginia area. 

I spent the week at the Waveland city shelter, which serves Hancock County and some of the hardest hit areas in Mississippi. Driving through town, one would think the storm hit just yesterday. The ditches are still lined with cars that were washed away, the trees are still littered with clothes, and massive piles of debris indicate that it will be quite some time before the area is back to normal. Sadly, in an area that already had problems for animals, this translates into even worse troubles. 

The Waveland shelter was one of those that did not evacuate so as the flood waters rose, all the animals inside perished. Progress at the shelter, which was cleaned and organized with the help of myself and IDA's other tireless volunteers, has now come to a halt. The Waveland Animal Control officer steadily brings in animals found roaming the streets who broke loose during the storm or were “set free” when their guardians returned to the remains of their homes and realized they no longer had a place to live. Other animals have been relinquished by guardians who are now living in one of the town’s tent cities or who left the area after their homes were destroyed, acknowledging that they could not provide adequate care. The crisis is now further exacerbated by the burgeoning stream of puppies and kittens being born as a result of unaltered animals left roaming the streets. The shelter, which can house 35 animals, is constantly at capacity and we spent every waking moment trying to make the lives of these animals who have endured so much a little more comfortable.

In response to a desperate call for volunteers, I traveled to New Orleans for several days to assist with the relief efforts in that city. Volunteers report that they have addresses for some 1,200 homes where animals were left. I planned to help go into homes to retrieve animals, but upon arrival was informed that the in-home rescues had been temporarily halted because the holding facility for animals rescued was at capacity. There was no longer a place to take animals rescued. We heard haunting stories about animals, survivors who had been rescued after holding on for seven long weeks in homes with no sustenance. It was heartbreaking knowing there were hundreds more waiting for help.

Meanwhile there was no shortage of work in New Orleans. I traveled with a partner through an assigned neighborhood placing food and water out at stations. Here too, the crisis has left animals roaming the streets. Many dogs have paired off and animals who were domestic, loving companions just weeks ago have formed packs and refuse to go near the people who want so desperately to help them. The workers try to lure in the alpha dogs but provide the animals with food and water until they come around.

Animal protection organizations have been marking the outside of homes where animals were found. One such home had a message painted outside. “Fish DOA” it read, but we decided to check it out anyways. As fate would have it, there was life in the house after all. In the bottom of the murky, black water of the fish tank, swimming alongside the skeletons of their companions were two fish fighting desperately to live. We packed the fish up in a container found inside the home and took them back to the triage center in New Orleans. 

A week’s hard work behind me, it was time to head back to Waveland to prepare for the long journey back home. Among the tragedies that awaited me was a pit bull with a severe wound on her neck where an embedded collar had been removed. With the help of Kris, a kind volunteer, I applied antibiotic ointment to the wound. The sweet girl trembled from the pain, but knowing we meant no harm, she endured the treatment with nary a whimper. 

In an effort to free up space at the shelters in the affected areas, we arranged with The Haven in North Carolina and the Norfolk (Virginia) SPCA to bring animals back. I arranged to bring nine cats from a shelter in Baton Rouge as well as two from Waveland in addition to six dogs. The day of my intended departure, five more kittens showed up as well as a tiny puppy who were packed up for the long drive as well. One further challenge arose when the packed vehicle wouldn’t start. A replacement was quickly located and joined by my wife and IDA employee, Kristie Phelps who was driving another vehicle, began the long journey north around 8:00 p.m. 

We made several stops to water and walk the dogs, clean litter pans, and to feed one cat, a severely emaciated blind female who, suffering from a severe upper respiratory infection, refused to eat. At one such stop, we were surrounded by curious onlookers asking about adoption, where the animals came from, and how they could help. By the time we got on the road again, two generous couples had bought us coffee and given us a donation for the drive back. Their kind actions are evidence that people want very much to help. Twenty-four hours later, we arrived back in Norfolk, exhausted from the trip, but wired from all that we experienced. In all, twenty-six animals were brought north. Their whereabouts were registered with the shelters in the Gulf area in case someone should come looking for them. After a thirty-day waiting period to enable their guardians to claim them, these animals will be adopted out to loving homes. 

Sadly, there are still thousands there who are in desperate need. It will be months, if not years, before things return to some form of normalcy, but for now, we must continue to pour our efforts into the area. Two months have passed and time has started to erode the sense of immediate need that people are attributing to the situation, but the truth is, there the air of desperation is still there in each and every one of the individual animals. Our work is far from over: We must not give up on them. 

Thank you IDA for the opportunity to make a difference. 





Read Project Hope’s Doll Stanley’s first hand account of Hurricane Katrina and the animal relief efforts