Veterinarian writing notes – Courtesy: Shutterstock – Image by Halfpoint
Several dogs and cats have been evacuated from Louisiana and brought to South Florida following news of Hurricane Ida’s strength.
The animals came from four different shelters in southern Louisiana that are at a high risk of being damaged due to Hurricane Ida’s wrath. The Category 4 storm is “extremely dangerous,” with 145 mph winds and flash flooding. “This is going to be a devastating, devastating hurricane,” said President Biden.
Staff members reached out to the Humane Society of Broward County for help.
The Humane Society’s high adoption rate and available space allowed them to agree to take in the animals.
They arrived Sunday morning in Fort Lauderdale after an extremely long drive in an RV.
“I knew that these dogs were really in danger,” said Loving Friends Transport driver Laura Taylor. “It seemed like when they got on the truck, they almost knew they were rescued.”
Employees at the Humane Society of Broward County on Griffin Road unloaded 12 cats and 36 dogs.
The drive was supposed to take 12 hours but ended up being 17 hours in total due to traffic jams caused by the high volume of people evacuating Louisiana at the same time.
“We were stuck in traffic for at least six and a half hours to Pensacola, so it was stop and go the whole entire way,” said Taylor.
About 10 minutes into the trip, Pepper, one of the dogs being evacuated, decided to chew her way through her cage. Taylor decided to allow her to ride shotgun for an hour and a half until putting her back into a new cage.
“By taking these animals, it gives a little relief to the staff and volunteers that operate these shelters, so they don’t have to worry about so many animals and they can prepare their homes for the hurricane as well,” said Cherie Watcher, Vice President of Marketing for the Humane Society of Broward County.
Before these furry friends find a loving home they will be dewormed, vaccinated, spayed, neutered, and microchipped.
“Because the South Florida community has always stepped up and helped in situations like this, we know that these animals are going to get adopted very quickly,” Watcher said.
These animals are expected to be available for adoption in the next two to five days, so keep an eye out!
As an independent nonprofit organization, the Humane Society of Broward County relies on the community’s generosity to fund its operations and program budget.
If you would like to donate to the organization, these are some of the supplies they’re in need of:
- Toys for cats and dogs
- Dog and cat treats
- Corrugated cardboard cat scratchers
- Newspaper for puppy kennels
For more donations, visit https://humanebroward.com/donate-old/wishlist/.
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Mike has more than 30 years of experience in marketing and public relations. He once owned his own agency and has worked with some of the largest brands in the world.
