LaSPCA begins major search for lost pets

By CityBusiness staff report
2006-01-10 10:20 AM CST

NEW ORLEANS — The Louisiana SPCA will begin a major trapping campaign today to sweep the unpopulated areas of lost pets and strays. The campaign, a collaboration of the LA/SPCA and the Humane Society of the United States, will take place through Jan. 20.

The campaign will focus on portions of Gentilly, eastern New Orleans and the Ninth Ward. Trappers will also target areas where the LA/SPCA has received numerous reports of stray dogs.

"This is a concentrated effort to attempt to find and assist animals that have become strays in this post-Katrina time," said LA/SPCA Executive Director Laura Maloney.

The trapping effort will focus primarily on dogs. Cats will only be trapped if they are sick or injured, or obviously friendly. The trappers do not plan to target healthy feral cats, as managed feral cat colonies are jointly being established and identified.

The LA/SPCA will hold stray animals for five days. After that, the animals will be evaluated and transferred to a shelter for adoption.

The LA/SPCA recommends that pet owners in these areas keep their animals properly confined during the sweep. Pet owners should also make sure their pets are wearing traceable identification and tags.

The Humane Society is bringing its special operations training team, as well as humane trapping equipment. The LA/SPCA will also work with Best Friends Animal Society to place the animals in new homes.

The private nonprofit LA/SPCA worked with several other agencies to rescue more than 8,500 animals after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans.•

Reunion: Chunky Found & Going Home

Following is the email I received today from Jacek who rescued Chunky the black cat who promptly got lost in the system. Kudos to Jacek for never giving up the search and for doing whatever was necessary to get all the information that finally connected him to Paula who was taking care of Chunky all this time.

Dear Anita,

I would like to officially tell you that we have found Chunky! It's been a few days since it actually happened, but I wanted to make sure I understand every piece of the story before telling everyone.

Chunky is in New Orleans with Paula Raspberry. I spoke with Paula and she is very nice, and happy that Chunky will be re-joining his family, now in Seattle. Sefla and her mother can't wait to have him back.

As you may know, we last saw Chunky at 2 p.m. on September 20. About an hour later Paula showed up at Lamar Dixon looking for her cats. She mistook Chunky for her black cat Felix. Interestingly, there were no papers whatsoever on Chunky's cage. His intake number was written on a white Tyvec collar, though. That's why we were able to track him down in the end.

Paula took him home and in a day or two realized that he was not Felix. She went back to Lamar Dixon on another occasion (she had about a dozen cats "boarded" there following Katrina, and it took her a while to locate and recover them all) and told the staff she would foster him until the owner shows up. And obviously no-one took note of this. So she waited and we were looking, and the missing link in the form of sheet of paper with Paula's contact info and Chunky's ID number was sitting quietly in the drawers at 2100 L Street, N.W..

A lot of people kindly donated their time and effort looking for Chunky. I hope not all of it was in vain. We got drawn into the search and in the process helped find a number of other animals.

All the best in the new year!

Jacek and Zosia

REUNION: Rusty the orange cat

Rusty's owner has never given up on him and has been walking in neighborhoods near her home and passed out fliers to anyone she saw.. People began to remember seeing the orange cat. She set a trap for him and caught him yesterday - December 14th. He is at the vet and has been given a clean bill of health. The last time she saw him was August 31st, the day she was forced to evacuate. Connie did everything imaginable to get her pet back and her persistance paid off. Lucky Rusty.

REUNION: Bikini and Vallie found

...all four now reunited!

(Bikini & Muddy reunion photo)

Steve found Vallie last week in an abandoned house not far from where she, Domino, Muddy and Bikini were left with the dog-sitter. I just learned that Bikini was rescued by a wonderful woman named Amy, taken away from a homeless man who was trying to use her as pit-bull bait Here is the email from Bikini's guardian: Yes it is true, we got Bikini back today, this morning!! The best possible Christmas gift ever, really. Yesterday Corky received an email from Dog Detective saying there was a possible match, usually these are imperfect and not even the same breed so we don't tend to put much hope into them but yesterday it happen to really be her. Apparently after the storm she got up to Canal street and a bum picked her up to use as bait to antagonize his three pit bulls, I guess to just pass the time after the strom. An angel of a lady, Amy, saw him and took Bikini away as fast as she could. Then she pampered and loved our little dogger, weekly groomings, tons of treats, new collar and all her shots, honestly this was really the kindest woman I have ever encountered- other that all of you guys that would so hard to help us find both Mud and Nini. We are so happy, I can't stop playing with them and the two dogs follow us from room to room now. Muddy goes to work and everywhere else with Corky these days so I am happy to have Bikini as my sidekick from now on. We are so happy, I can't even begin to explain. I feel like we have recovered from the Storm! Thank you, thank you, all of you. Karma must at work here as on Monday I volunteered to get some of the last strayed caught and shipped up to a new facility in Tylertown, Best Friends. Merry Merry Christmas to all of you. Tavi

Beautiful female brown & white pit bull terrier found near Wingate Dr / Gentilly area (may have been found in same house as male boxer below).

Male Red & White Boxer rescued by Pasado's "Safe" Haven near the Wingate Dr / Gentilly area (may have been in same house as the female brown and white pit above).

Seeking Owners for these Rescued Dogs

The dogs featured in this above posts (which will be updated as often as needed) were rescued and are being sheltered or fostered by people who are not searching for the owners. No Animal Left Behind and Stealth Volunteers are working to reunite these and other Katrina pets with their owners. While there are some pets ( a small percentage) who should not be reunited with their New Orleans owners (documented cases of abuse or neglect), we believe that the great majority of pet owners deserve to have their pets returned to them regardless of whether or not they were heartworm positive or spayed/neutered. Please check back often to offer any help you can. Please also send info and photos of other rescued Katrina pets whose owners are not being searched for to noanimalleftbehind@gmail.com
Check katrinaretrievers.blogspot.com for found goldens and labs seeking owners.

PET OWNERS: Check here regularly for important information and updates

If your pet seems to be "lost in the system" be sure to check the website for Animal Rescue New Orleans often for info and updates on continuing search and rescue work in New Orleans.

Locate Your Lost Katrina Pet Event hosted by Best Friends in New Orleans Dec. 16-18
We know it has been difficult, even impossible, for families who are missing their pets to navigate all of the available resources.

This event will allow you to search in one place for your missing pets. We will set up banks of computers and give families the opportunity to work with reunion specialists to search for their pets – on a first come/first served basis.

We have asked numerous groups, including Mutt Shack, Grassroots Emergency Animal Rescue (at the Winn Dixie), Humane Louisiana, and Pasado’s Safe Haven to participate, bringing their databases and intake records. We have invited Petfinder, Stealth Volunteers and other reunion specialists to participate as well.

Where:
Garden District Hotel
2203 St. Charles Avenue (corner of Jackson and St. Charles Avenues)
New Orleans, LA 70130
University Conference Room

When:
Friday, December 16 - 10am - 6pm
Saturday, December 17 - 10am - 6pm
Sunday, December 18 - 1pm - 6pm

Free parking in the rear of the hotel

SPCA Cincinnati has many cats and dogs at their shelter

Click here to go to their site to search for Katrina pets. They have a link for cats and one for dogs. Lots of dogs. If you see a photo that you think may be your pet, copy and save the photo and all related information on your hard drive. Katrina pet information is disappearing off shelter websites.

PetHarbor now has a complete list of the dogs sent to EDNAH
1. Go to Petharbor
2. Scroll below the Rita links until you see the yellow box labeled Project Barkansas and click on the dog link.
3. The photos are all blurred until you click on a specific one.
There are now 13 pages of dogs listed. Because the current location of those dogs is still a mystery, if you see your dog there, contact us - include the photo of the dog, the PetHarbor name and number and a description - breed, color, gender. I hope to find out the current location of these dogs soon.

St. Bernard Parish Pets
Photo albums of the pets rescued by Camp Lucky can be viewed at the following location:
Government Complex Building
Public Works Office
2nd Floor
Chalmette
Telephone 504.278.4317
Monday - Friday 8 am - 4 pm (may also be opened on weekends)

This phone number is for Animal Control but will be dispatched to the Government Building where the temporary Control Unit is currently operating. They hope to move from the Public Works Office back to the original Animal Control Site later this week so be sure to call ahead.

These photos are of animals rescued by Camp Lucky through October 1st. The original group of animals went to the SPCA in Los Angeles:
http://www.spcala.com/hurricanekatrina_animals1.html

Most of the next rescues went to the Humane Society in Pinellas / Clearwater Florida, or the Wild Animal Orphanage in San Antonio, Texas. Some but not all of the photos/reports have begun to appear on Petfinder, so if possible, travel into the Parish to view the actual photos.

New Orleans Library Hours - Internet Access to search Petfinder and Petharbor
Internet, fax and photocopy service available.
The Nix branch at 1401 South Carrollton Avenue, is open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
The Hubbell branch at 725 Pelican Avenue in Algiers Point, is open Monday-Friday, noon-4 p.m.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION IF YOU NEED HELP SEARCHING FOR YOUR PET
If you need help searching for your lost or missing pet, please follow these recommendations. We have very little time left to find many pets for many people, so please understand that these recommendations are intended to benefit the most number of people with the limited resources available. The phone number is only for those people without internet access. Everyone else, please use email.

Our volunteers have access to resources and information that may not be available to the public, so if you are already working with someone who is able to help you in that way, please understand that we can't ask another volunteer work with you too. We need to adhere to having just one-volunteer per pet owner. There are thousands of missing pets and only hundreds of volunteers, all with limited time to do this, and we are trying to help as many people as possible. We would like to be able to find every single missing pet so the better allocated our resources, the more likely we are able to do that. Thank you for understanding.

Send an email to noanimalleftbehind@gmail.com with all of the following information:

1) In the subject heading - write Searching for Max, Male German Shepherd mix (or whatever the name, sex and breed of your dog is) or Searching for Fluffy, female orange tabby. Include all of the following information:

2) The address the pet was left at, rescued from or last known to be, even if this is just a neighborhood. Include zip code and name of section, parish, etc. If the pet is known to have been rescued, the date to the best of your knowledge. Mention any writing on the house or notes left by rescue groups. The more specific you can be, the better. If you do not know for sure if your pet was ever rescued, please indicate that.

3) A complete description of the pet - breed(s); color; sex including if spayed or neutered; age; weight; approx. height; markings; color of eyes; condition of teeth including if any are missing; any scars. All unique characteristics such as if one ear is bent in a different way than other ear; docked tail; extra toes; spots on tongue, etc.

If there is a Petfinder LOST report, please include the Petfinder number(s).

4) Collar (type, color), tags, or any other external identification. All known information from tags. If the pet is micro-chipped, include the number if known.

5) Any other pets left at/rescued from this address and whether they are still missing or have been found. If found, where and when. If missing, please list separately.

6) Your name, current phone number and email address. Also, your old phone number in New Orleans if now out-of-service. Your current complete mailing address.

7) Please include a photo of your pet if you have one. If you have one but are not able to send it electronically, we will help you get the photo sent to us.

Thank you very much! Check this specific link often for updates and information.


NEW PHOTOS OF RESCUED PETS
It was just learned that the LaSPCA, who rescued animals from New Orleans in October and took them to their new shelter in Algiers, posted these animals on the wrong section of PetHarbor. These animals do not show up in a normal PetHarbor search for Katrina animals and they are not on Petfinder.

To searh the LaSPCA pets on PetHarbor, visit the Animal Rescue New Orleans website and click on the Find Lost Pets link for easy step-by-step instructions.

REUNION: Pepper the Chi

HUGE thanks to volunteers Sara Ratekin, DVM and Susan Bongiorno. They worked together for weeks, following leads, collaborating information, digging up photos of possible matches, and sending those photos to Pepper'sowner, Tony Licciardi who has been fighting bone cancer. Pepper has been in a wonderful foster home in North Dakota with Darla Yliniemi who brought her back to N.D. with her after helping with rescue efforts in September. Sara first met Tony during one of her three trips to New Orleans and she promised him that she would help find Pepper for him.

In the photo above, Karen Thunshelle, shelter manager for the Souris Valley Humane Society, gets a kiss from Pepper. On Saturday, Thunshelle will fly with Pepper to Mississippi to reunite her with Tony.

December 8, 2005
THE MINOT DAILY NEWS
By Jill Schramm, Staff Writer

Pepper is going home for Christmas.

The 6-year-old Chihuahua has only a few more days of Minot's sweater-weather left before hopping a plane to Mississippi to be reunited with an owner she hasn't seen since they were separated after Hurricane Katrina.

Karen Thunshelle, shelter manager for the Souris Valley Humane Society in Minot, said Pepper will be as glad to be back in warmer temperatures as she'll be to see her owner again. Thunshelle boards a flight to Mississippi with Pepper Saturday.

Darla Yliniemi, who has provided a foster home for Pepper, said Pepper gets along better with her dogs and cat than she does with the weather.

"She likes to wear her sweater," she said. "She doesn't like the cold but she's not afraid of my big dogs."

The Humane Society of the United States is funding the trip to bring Pepper back to her family, Tony and Shirley Licciardi, before Christmas.

"I can't wait to see her," said Tony Licciardi, who has bone cancer that he described as widespread. He said Pepper's return might help his physical health by relieving the distress he's felt since losing her.

"All I do is cry about her, cry for her," he sad. "I sure miss her."

Pepper came to North Dakota after Thunshelle befriended her while assisting with animal rescue in Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina in September. The white and pale brown short-hair came to the rescue shelter dirty, hungry, carrying fleas and scared.

"She was a little nippy," Thunshelle said. "She actually just bonded with me. I was about one of the only people who could handle her down there. I just couldn't leave her down there."

Thunshelle arranged to bring Pepper to Minot.

Tony Licciardi said he became separated from Pepper and his two other dogs when police came to rescue him from his home flooded under seven feet of water. When the police went back for the dogs, they couldn't find them.

Licciardi said he spent a couple of days on a Navy boat and it was some time before he could search for his dogs.

"I have been all over looking for them, calling everybody," he said. The two missing dogs are a Chihuahua and Pomeranian.

Licciardi told an animal rescue worker in New Orleans about his dogs after returning to check on damage to his home there. The worker searched the hurricane registry through Pet Finder and located Pepper in Minot. Licciardi said he identified Pepper's Internet picture on the computer in a library.

"I said 'Yes, that's her!'" he said. "I have never seen another one her color with markings like she has."

Pepper, who had been known as Booboo at Souris Valley Humane Society until identified about three weeks ago, is recovering from the trauma of the hurricane.

"The first time the wind picked up, she paced half the night. She just couldn't settle down," Yliniemi said. "She's slowly adjusted to know the wind is not going to hurt her."

Thunshelle said the local humane society will miss Pepper, but they are pleased that Pepper's homecoming means Licciardi's losses to Hurricane Katrina will be one less.

"He doesn't have anything anymore, so we are glad we can make at least something good come out of this," she said.

PLEASE Look At This Photo

Desperate owner looking for Rueben, a very sweet older dog who (along with another dog since found) was released from 726 North Hagan Street in New Orleans by a well-meaning rescue worker or military person. A friend had been providing food and water.

Rueben is part Golden Retriever and part … lab? shepard? His owner says he was often mistaken for a St. Bernard. He is large (about 80 pounds, pre-Katrina) with long silky black hair with a brown undercoat. His legs are brindle and he is missing one of his canine teeth. He has a very sweet disposition. If found please call Jordana Smith at 504-237-8364 or send an email to us here if you have any information about where Rueben might be.

I found this reunion story on the website of New Leash on Life and wanted to share it here. I think it makes it clear why returning a pet to its family is the right thing to do for all concerned including the pet.

Just wanted to share this with you, it's things like this that make you smile and keep you going. I just got off the phone with Max's owner. To put it mildly, they are overjoyed! They got Max in 1995. They thought they would never see Max again, they were sure he was dead, (he is 11 and a bit overweight). Another pet was found still in the yard on October the 2nd, almost a skeleton and exhaling oil fumes with every breath. He is in a hospital and is very ill. When I spoke with them on Saturday they couldn't believe they might get Max back. They were worried after everything he went through and the time away, he might not remember them. When the crate was brought in at the cargo terminal, they could see him and called his name. He almost broke the crate open with excitement. They had an hour ride home from the airport and called to let me know he arrived safely. They kept repeating, "He is so happy." I know that if we hadn't found them Max would have been adopted and probably had a nice life but now he can spend his remaining years with the only family he's ever known. They are right, he is "so happy."

Many ways to transport pets back to owners

List compiled by our friends at Best Friends . . . you guys rock

Acme Pet Transport:
http://www.acmepettransport.com
Arizona Animal Rescue Coalition:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/azarc
Basenji Rescue & Transport:
http://www.basenjirescue.org/
Basset Hounds:
http://www.dailydrool.com/raa/home.html
California Rescue Railroad:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CaRescueRR
Canine Underground Railroad:
http://members.aol.com/paladin003/sanctuary/cur.html
Dog Rescue Railroad:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Dog_Rescue_RailRoad
DOTS (Dalmatian Overland Transport Service):
http://www.dalrescue.com/dots-signup.html
Heart Bandits - Eskie Railroad:
http://www.heartbandits.com/pages/railroad.html
IMOM Express:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IMOM-xpress
Lab-Links:
http://www.lab-links.com/transport.htm
Meezer Express:
http://www.siameserescue.org/express.html
Operation Roger:
http://truckers4truckers.com/phpBB/index.php
Rescue Angels on Wheels:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RescueAngelsonWheels
Rescue Transport:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RescueTransport
Rolling Rescue:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rollingrescue
Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TX-NM-AZ-Rescue-animal-transporters
TRAIN (Transporting & Rescuing Animals In Need):
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/train_transport_rescue/
Truck-n-Paws:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TRUCK-N-PAWS

Volunteer air transport:
FlyDogs: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flydogs

Many cities have “pet taxi” businesses that transport pets locally. Try searching on Yahoo.com

Paid moving companies:
Pro-Pet Transports: http://www.pro-pet-transports.com
PetTransporter.com: http://www.pettransporter.com

Paid air transport:
The Independent Pet and Animal Transportation Association International, Inc. (IPATA) has a list of companies that assist with air transport on their website, at this link: http://www.ipata.com/page.php?rp=2

Informational sites:
Links: http://www.wonderpuppy.net/rescue.htm#boards
Rescue Assistance: http://www.caryn.com/francis/discussion/rescue.html
Shipping Cats Domestically: or another search engine for services in your area. http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/4114/shipping.html
IPATA International: http://www.ipata.com/page.php?rp=

IMPORTANT Updates for SBP pet owners

The Island Business Group has recovered the St. Bernard Parish Animal Shelter's data from their flooded computers !!

Any microchips sold to St. Bernard Parish Government, St. Bernard Parish Animal Control, or St. Bernard Parish Animal Shelter are now accessible. Owners may request a "reverse search" to find their microchip numbers while updating their contact information.

License tags for pets that were adopted through the shelter, pets that were impounded, or pets whose owners purchased them directly from the shelter are also listed. Unfortunately, the majority of licenses were not on computer.

To search this database go to:
http://www.islandbusinessgroup.com/stbernard.asp
If a match is found, you can click on the link or email the shelter at sbpanimal@aol.com

We are asking that owners whose pets are microchipped or have other searchable identification (a known license or vet hopital tag number, a tattoo, etc.) and are looking for their pets contact Ceily at sbpanimal@aol.com with their current address and telephone numbers. This will be added to the shelter's database so that anyone looking for the owner will be able to find them.

Also check out www.loststbernardpets.org
Dogs
Cats

Other places to look for photos of SBP animals:

The Los Angeles SPCA Link pictures a group of pets rescued by Camp Lucky that were flown to California for distribution throughout the state. Under each rescued pet photo is a contact telephone number. Additional photos of some of the same pets are listed on the Los Angeles SPCA site.
Los Angeles SPCA

Pasadena Humane/SPCA has listed their group separately on their own website.

Humane Society of Northwest Louisiana in Shreveport. When viewing this link be sure to scroll to the bottom of each page and click on previous posts. It will then bring up previous pages of rescued pet photos. Continue to do this until you reach the end.

Dr. Paul Levitas Link

Pet Survivors

PETA Rescues

ASPCA Photo Albums of St Bernard Parish Rescues

The Humane Society of North Texas has received several rescued pets that were originally taken to Rebel Field in Chalmette. There are new and better photos pictured on their website of these same rescued animals.

Humane Society of Knox County in Rockland, Maine or HSKC - Katrina Fosters
207-594-2200 email director@humanesocietyofknoxcounty.org)

Miss Kitty's devoted owner, Bill Harris dies at age 63

Goodbye Bill.

The four-legged ones who have crossed the Rainbow Bridge have received a very special new resident.

Rest in peace.

REUNION: Chedder (Chat) the beagle is back home

Chedder ("Chat") was reunited with his family yesterday in Houston after a long, drawn-out battle with BREW, the beagle rescue group that Chedder had been given to. The Washington Animal Rescue League had taken in Chedder after Katrina and had been told he was owner surrendered, so they gave the young beagle to BREW Beagle Rescue who in turn adopted him out to someone in Richmond, VA (whose identity is unknown at this time). Almost immediately, Renee - Chedder's owner - identified him from photos from a news program and also from the shelter's website. Once the Executive Director of WARL was made aware of the situation and looked at photos, he did everything he could to get Chedder back from BREW. From the outset (over two months ago) BREW claimed that the dog they had was not Chedder even though the photos proved it was. They refused to allow Renee or anyone to see the dog. When asked to send additional photos, they sent the same photos that were on the website. BREW's lawyer added insult to injury when she stepped in and talked to Renee in a degrading and insulting way. WARL asked their lawyer to intervene. On and on.

Then, a few weeks ago it seemed as if BREW was finally ready to cooperate but it soon became obvious that it was another of of their stall tactics, hoping that Renee would give up and go away. You would think that a dog rescue group would have a little better understanding of the unbreakable bond between people and their pets.

Story of Chedder's Katrina experience: Renee and the rest of the family were sent on to Houston and her father stayed behind with Chedder. When the flooding began and he was forced to evacuate, he and Chedder went to the Convention Center. When the busses finally arrived to take the evacuees to the Astrodome in Houston, Renee's father and Chedder boarded a bus. The bus driver said that Chedder had to be removed from the bus. As if he knew what was going on, Chedder crawled up to the luggage area and burrowed in. The bus driver insisted the dog be removed, so Renee's father tried to get off the bus with Chedder but was not allowed. He had no choice and did as the bus driver ordered, and as the bus pulled away he watched his daughter's beloved puppy chase after it.

EMERGENCY at animal shelter in Mason County, W Va - HELP NEEDED NOW

Update 11/22 9:41 pm

I just got off the phone with Derrick. He counted so far 19 dead cats and 3 dead dogs. 2 of the dogs were burnt so bad that they can't tell who they are.

Can you please put something on the website's that it will take days before we can get back to everyone. I'm sitting here right now with 151 emails and I have no desire to look at them right now. I'm sick to my stomach and none of us are dealing well with this at all. We just need some time.

Please tell everyone to keep the living animals, the staff, and the ones that passed over the rainbow bridge in their prayers tonight. We thank everyone for their support and appreciate all their efforts on our behalf.

Sally

11/22/05 approximately 3:00 pm

It is with the heaviest of hearts that I write this post. I can't stop crying. We need help!

There's been a gas explosion at the Mason County shelter in Point Pleasant WV. It happened during the installation of the new heating system.

All of the following information was gathered in the first hour after the explosion. Details may change as things settle down and volunteers get there to help assess the situation.

All of the staff members made it out alive. Danielle, the shelter director, has suffered smoke inhalation from going back in to rescue animals.

Of all the cats/kittens at the shelter, only one made it out alive. It had to be resuscitated. No idea if it will live.

It is believed that all of the puppies died in the fire and smoke...the staff couldn't get to the puppy or cat rooms to pull them out.

They were able to get to the large dog kennels and pull out a lot of the dogs. They basically pushed them out the door and the dogs are running loose. Not all got out. Some died in the initial explosion, others probably of smoke inhalation. Initial estimate is that approximately 50-60 dogs were pushed out the door by the dedicated kennel staff who refused to give up trying to save them.

At the moment, the building appears to be a total loss. All they have is possibly the use of a few outside pens. The remaining dogs are being rounded up now.

It's cold in WV...there's no indoor place to house these animals.

Supplies needed (I'm sure this list will grow)

Dog food

Water & food bowls

Leashes & collars

They need a building...can someone in or near Mason County WV loan them the use of a vacant building until they can move these dogs out to rescues? For location purposes, their zip code is 25550. Shelter is located in Point Pleasant.

The rescues they work with on a regular basis have been contacted and hopefully will be able to take some dogs into foster care.

This is the home of the Mason County Animal Welfare League (MCAWL), a group of volunteers that have been trying to make this a no-kill shelter. If you've seen any posts about them recently, you know how hard they've been working to help these animals. Email contacts are volunteers who are not located at the shelter, so anyone wishing to help can still reach them via the email address on the website: MasonCAWL@yahoo.com

Here is the Petfinder site: http://masoncounty.petfinder.com

As we find out which dogs are alive, we will put the word ALIVE next to their name on the site.

To help or donate: http://www.petfinder.org/shelters/WV39.html

The EDNAH "Sanctuary" Before and After Photos

Thanks to the hard work and dedication of volunteers from all over the country working with the great folks of Mountain Home Pets along with United Animal Nations and HSUS, the former EDNAH "sanctuary" looks like a very different place today.

Baxter County District Judge Van Gearhart ruled yesterday that 327 animals found in filthy conditions at a so-called sanctuary can be relocated and adopted into new homes. Judge Gearhart denied the owners’ request to regain custody of the animals, mostly dogs, and charged William and Tammy Hanson with 27 additional counts of animal cruelty.
Today, the same judge ruled that all the dogs be transferred to HSUS as of Monday, Nov. 28, 2005. Mountain Home Pets is working to get qualified rescue organizations lined up to accept the animals.

Pets Seeking Owners

This adult male is being fostered at Sayzar Co-Operative Rescue Efforts
in Elkton, MD Phone: 800-200-9150 Email: dmacdonald@sayzar.com

Noah's Wish final report from Slidell

• • Press release: November 21, 2005 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time

  Noah’s Wish Departs Slidell, LA After Rescuing over 1,900 Animals Affected by Hurricane Katrina

  (Slidell, LA) November 21, 2005 – After working around-the-clock for 11 weeks in an extraordinary effort to rescue and shelter animals left behind in the destruction of Hurricane Katrina, the Noah’s Wish team bade farewell to Slidell today. Through their efforts approximately 1,900 animals were successfully rescued and cared for, including cats, dogs, birds and exotics. Every animal rescued by Noah’s Wish volunteers was reunited with its owner, placed into foster care, or adopted into a loving new home.

  In the immediate aftermath of Katrina, the non-profit organization that works exclusively to rescue and shelter animals in disasters arrived in Slidell, which had been completely destroyed by the hurricane. Prior to the storm, the Slidell Animal Control facility had been able to evacuate its animals but was unable to return to their flooded building. Noah’s Wish Founder and Director Terri Crisp worked with Slidell Animal Control to set up a temporary shelter in a large warehouse provided by the city. “Noah’s Wish did a fantastic job for the people of Slidell,” said Mayor Ben O. Morris. “There were no animals roaming loose on our streets and no reported dog bites. I am eternally grateful for this great organization and it’s most impressive leadership.”

  “Pet owners in Slidell had the best chance of finding their pets, thanks to the time, manpower and resources invested by Noah’s Wish in our community during this disaster,” remarked Slidell Animal Control Assistant Director Damian Anti. Many residents whose homes were destroyed during the disaster needed to find temporary shelter for their animals. Noah’s Wish placed hundreds of pets in temporary foster care homes—all located no more than one hour away from their owners. “For a lot of folks around here, all they have left are their animals” observed Anti.

  The organization took extensive efforts to track owners and let them know their animals had been saved. “It is our responsibility to make sure that each animal affected by this disaster was given every possible chance to be reunited with their owner” said Crisp.

  When an animal was evacuated from a home in the days immediately following the disaster, a brightly colored flyer was left prominently on the front door along with directions to the temporary shelter where the animal could be found. A second posting would be made if an animal was still in the shelter after three weeks. Flyers were posted in public areas where animals had been found stray.

  “We knew that after a certain point, residents who left Slidell had to get their mail forwarded, and most people came back to Slidell to meet with FEMA or their insurance companies,” said Crisp. With that in mind, Crisp and her team sent certified letters to each home where an animal had been rescued. In addition, flyers were posted at every public location where evacuees were congregating – Red Cross shelters, insurance offices, FEMA offices. Additionally, ads were taken out in several local newspapers to help spread the word among residents that their animals were being cared for in a temporary shelter.

  Hundreds of trained volunteers from across the United States and Canada worked tirelessly for weeks to rescue and care for the animals of Slidell. “Without the help of the volunteers who spent countless hours away from their families, we could not have saved so many animals,” said Ante. “This community is forever indebted to those folks.”

  Noah’s Wish did not leave Slidell until all animals that had been rescued from Slidell after the hurricane were reunited with their owners, placed in foster homes or adopted. A few animals remained in the care of Slidell Animal Control, waiting to be transported to their new homes by the end of the week.

  As a lasting gesture of their support for the community of Slidell, Noah’s Wish has pledged $1 million to the rebuilding effort of the Slidell Animal Control building which suffered extensive structural damage during the hurricane.

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UPDATE from Noah's Wish (i.e. The Truth)

• Director's Update: November 20, 2005 4:00 p.m. Pacific Time

There have been rumors circulating on the internet recently that pertain to Noah's Wish which I would like to correct. I apologize for not doing this sooner but we have been extremely busy trying to shut down our operation in Slidell. Also, I would have hoped that people would trust us enough to do our job the right way and not get pulled into the rumor frenzy. In all honesty, taking time to put these rumors to an end definitely distracts from what needs to be done right now for the few remaining animals in our care.

Noah's Wish will be completely closing down our shelter on November 21 which we have had open in Slidell, Louisiana for 84 days. Originally, we thought we would be done by the 15th of November, but we postponed our departure when we realized there was still more work to be done. When we leave, everyone of the 1,986 animals we have cared for will either be reunited with their families, placed in a foster home, adopted, or they will be waiting for an individual or small rescue group to pick them up. We are not turning animals over to Slidell Animal Control for them to be euthanized which is the rumor being circulated on the internet. The rumor that we are doing this is absolutely incorrect. There will be a small number of animals that do stay at the animal control shelter for a few days after we leave as they cannot be picked up before we depart. We will follow through with animal control to make sure this happens. If any of the plans fall through we will come up with another solution.

I must say it is an insult to the organization for people to think we would give up on these animals at this point. It makes me sad at how quickly people jumped to misjudge us when our history in past disasters proves we have always been committed to the animals that we take responsibility for during disasters, no matter how long it takes to get them all where they belong and where they will be well cared for. For those who have sent e-mails saying they will no longer support Noah's Wish, I can only say that we want people to support our work who truly trust us and believe in our commitment to the animals. And, there are hundreds of thousands of people who do and the numbers are continuing to grow rapidly.

All of us on site in Slidell have put in incredibly long hours for the past 2 and a half months taking care of all the needs of the animals that have come through our shelter. We have nursed animals back to health, bathed them when they were covered in oil, held them in our arms when they were scared, gave them blankets to curl up with at night when the weather got colder, and played with them to help them feel they mattered to us. The love and attention that has been shown for these animals is a testament to the compassion everyone on the Noah's Wish team, including Slidell Animal Control, feels towards these animals and also their caregivers. Noah's Wish has invested a great deal in the animals we have been responsible for during this disaster and we will continue to do this, not only during this disaster, but in future ones too.

I want to also come to the defense of Slidell Animal Control. For people to automatically think that turning animals over to this agency means they will die is wrong and unfair. Out of all the agencies and organizations that Noah's Wish has worked with during past disasters they have been by far the best. The level of commitment to the animals, and the obvious concern and compassion that the staff has shown throughout this entire ordeal, is to be commended. They too have invested a great deal in these animals, working right along side of us the entire time. There is no way they could give up on these animals either.

Noah's Wish will be posting a full report on our website once our work in Slidell is complete.