Earlier in August, 2016, the people of Louisiana were plagued with the worst natural disaster in America since Hurricane Sandy. The streets filled with water seemingly overnight, creating an incredible flood. Images and videos surfaced of roof height water, stranded civilians, and displaced pets. The heart wrenching reality of many animals is almost too tough to bear.
Prior to and during the flood, hundreds of animals were surrender to nearby shelters, overwhelming staff and volunteers. These facilities filled quickly, and soon enough, there was no more room for homeless pets. This is when PETA’s rescue team headed straight for Baton Rouge to locate and rescue the most vulnerable flood victims. Cats, dogs, small animals, and more were found amongst the floodwaters.
PETA’s team worked tirelessly for days.
“They searched the flooded city and surrounding areas, waded through deep waters, and did all they could to help reunite families with their lost animals, deliver free food and other supplies in boats, and get stranded animals to safety.” – PETA
When PETA returned from their long journey, they welcomed a total of 60 animals from the Baton Rouge area. Among these animals were 35 dogs, 20 cats, six rabbits, and one cockatiel. These animals have been safely relocated to Virginia and North Carolina to search for homes of their own.
“Transferring these animals will provide some much needed relief to Baton Rouge–area animal shelters, which are facing a spike in surrendered and found animals during this devastating time, by freeing up space for the continuous influx of flood victims.” – PETA
PETA is hoping that neighboring communities will open their doors and their hearts to the homeless animals of the Baton Rouge Flood. They are currently working with Chesapeake Humane Society, Chesapeake Animal Services, Chowan-Gates Animal Shelter, Danville Area Humane Society, Norfolk Animal Care and Adoption Center, and Virginia Beach SPCA in order to temporarily place these animals in safe housing until they can find more permanent homes.
If you live in the Eastern United States, and are interested in adopting homeless animals from the Baton Rouge flood, you can email PETA’s adoption line at adopt@pet.org.
For those who are unable to adopt, but still want to assist in the rescue efforts, please considering donating to PETA or any of the animal shelters listed above.
You can learn more about PETA’s efforts, and see some of the adoptable animals by watching this video on Facebook.
1. PETA 2. NBC Washington 3. Town News 4. PETA
