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Hurricane Katrina

Mississippi pets find sheltering arms

Of 35 animals brought to the Humane Society of Pinellas from the area devastated by Katrina, about 15 have been adopted. Another 35 went to the SPCA.

By TERRI BRYCE REEVES
Published September 14, 2005

Ashley Williams found the dog on a search-and-rescue mission near Hattiesburg, Miss.

The bleeding and traumatized young Labrador retriever was standing guard over its owners' lifeless bodies, protecting them from a pack of hungry strays.

The couple had apparently drowned in a storm surge. They were found lying arm-in-arm, the woman still holding the dog's empty leash.

Its reward for such loyalty now will be a life at Williams' Ocala horse farm, where he "will be free to run and play with two other dogs," she said.

Williams chokes up at this point, as she recounts how many photos of the dog she found in the wreckage of the house.

"The best part is that these people who have gone to a better place can look down and know their dog has found a good home," said Williams, 33.

The dog, now at the Humane Society of Pinellas, where it is being treated for heartworm likely acquired in the aftermath of Katrina, was one of about 70 animals brought back from the Mississippi Gulf Coast by Tampa Bay area DART, Disaster Animal Response Team.

Team members are veterinarians, animal control officers, and shelter workers from the SPCA Tampa Bay and the Humane Society of Pinellas.

They are trained to set up shelters for abandoned, lost, and sick and injured animals. Sometimes that means finding their owners. Often, it means finding new ones.

"Our main mission is to reunite them with their owner," said Connie Brooks, director of operations for the SPCA Tampa Bay. "If the owners can't take care of them anymore, then we will give them a second chance at life."

The initial rescue is often just the first step. The team helped set up the Hattiesburg Temporary Animal Relief Shelter, an agricultural site with four barns and about 400 stalls that provides temporary relief for rescued animals from the Gulfport and Biloxi areas. The facility also doubles as a pet-friendly shelter for pets and their owners.

"These animals come in and often have a blank look in their eyes," Brooks said. "Some bounce back right away and for others it will take time."

As the animals come in, they are tagged, examined, fed and bathed, often twice, to get rid of all the chemicals, dirt and stench.

After that, they usually fall into a deep sleep. For many, it's the first shut-eye they've had in days.

Anxious owners come in to scour the cages for their lost pets. Their stories are those of terror and often regret, Brooks said.

One woman whose home was flooding from the storm surge had to choose between holding the hands of her two children or holding onto her dog. She remembers last seeing her red hound mix swimming down the street. Now she goes from shelter to shelter, hoping to find it.

Another man who had to board a bus without his dog left it tied to a pole. He has no idea where his pet is or even whether it is still alive. He, too, searches.

Other owners, homeless and helpless, surrender their animals and hope someone else will give them the homes they can't.

Animals will be held at the Hattiesburg facility for at least 30 days to give owners time to find them. If animals are not claimed, they will be transported to permanent shelters and put up for adoption.

The Pinellas shelters are sending more teams and anticipate bringing back many more animals in the coming months.

"We need people to come in and adopt these or other animals so we can make more room in our shelters," Brooks said.

All of the rescued animals up for adoption in Pinellas were either relinquished by their owners, or, as in the case of the yellow Lab, no longer have living owners.

Of the 35 animals the Humane Society of Pinellas brought back, about 15 have been adopted already and many others are spoken for.

"We have seen a big increase of people wanting to adopt this week," said Rick Chaboudy, executive director of the Humane Society of Pinellas. "I've considered putting up a rope line like they have at Disney World."

Arik Bergerman, 41, of the Pinellas Point neighborhood in St. Petersburg, adopted a black Lab, whose owners were found dead in an attic, from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. He already had four other dogs but felt compelled to add to his fur family after the disaster.

"We just wanted to adopt a dog that had lost its family," he said. "He is adjusting very well. He will have a very good life and get to swim in a nice big swimming pool."

To adopt a pet, call the Humane Society of North Pinellas, 3040 S.R. 590, Clearwater, at 797-7722, or SPCA of Tampa Bay, 9099 130th Ave. N, Largo, at 586-3591.

[Last modified September 14, 2005, 09:29:59]