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Animal Rescues in Crisis During Pandemic

Animal Rescues in Crisis During Pandemic

Spring is the season that shelters and rescuers dread the most. While the trees bring forth brilliantly colored baby leaves and blossoms adorn fields and roadways, mother dogs and cats who are homeless or have irresponsible guardians are birthing puppies and kittens who will need homes.

In Defense of Animals’ Hope Animal Sanctuary in Mississippi is going beyond the call of duty to aid as many animals as our facility can humanely provide nourishment and affection to. Unfortunately, ours is one of the many states that prohibited the transport of animals during a mandated stay-at-home order implemented in an attempt to mitigate COVID-19’s impact. Sadly, spay and neuter surgeries were deemed “non-essential” surgeries, and have been prohibited.

All of this has made helping animals more difficult. At the same time, our Justice for Animals Campaign is being inundated with communications pleading for assistance for placement or safe-haven for puppies, kittens, and adult dogs who may have been abandoned away from homes, near bridges, in the woods, and often near dumpsters. 

Sadly, we believe that many people who surrender or abandon their animals during these uncertain times are the people who most likely would have done so anyway. They simply use the virus outbreak to justify their actions.

Yet we persist. Doll Stanley, our Justice for Animals Campaign Director, has taken dog houses to give shelter to dogs who cannot be seized at this time. She also headed out to transport four motherless three-week-old orphaned kittens to one of our volunteers who has a nursing cat who we saved recently during a cruelty investigation.

Momma cat has adopted four helpless kittens in addition to her own.

Every hand is on deck in the rescue and sheltering world, and we want to thank everyone in the humane movement for what you are doing and ask that you please, if you have not already, share any information you may have on sheltering, dog and cat food banks, any medical assistance available, and other forms of support on social media and with your local newspapers and radio stations.

Please also keep reminding people via your social media channels that they are in no known danger of contracting COVID-19 from their animal companions. We should treat their sicknesses and keep them safe, just like we would any other family member, and never abandon them. 

In the meantime, you can help us keep going and braced for an influx of animals who will desperately need care by making a donation.

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