On Labor Day, 55 adorable canines exited our Mobile Rescue Unit into the bright sunshine, and into the helping hands of dozens of North Shore Animal League America volunteers and staff. These precious dogs and puppies now have a second chance at life with help from our shelter partner, Paws4Life. They were rescued from Louisiana-area shelters in advance of Hurricane Ida, in order to make room for animals displaced by the storm.
Reeling from devastating winter storms, millions of Texans struggled for survival without heat or clean water. For the state’s many homeless animals living outside or in shelters, the situation was becoming increasingly desperate. The Emergency Rescue Team at North Shore Animal League America quickly rallied to help. Our Mobile Rescue Unit delivered much needed supplies of pet food and medication to the area, and rescued 24 dogs and puppies from the elements, and possible euthanasia.
On October 23, 2020, our Mobile Rescue Unit pulled into our Port Washington, N.Y. campus from its third lifesaving mission to the hurricane-devastated areas in Louisiana and Texas. It was carrying 37 puppies and dogs and 18 cats and kittens that would have been euthanized as the shelters there are overflowing with animals due to the non-stop storms.
North Shore Animal League America arranged a transport with PAWS4Life that would ultimately open up space in Bossier City Animal Control and other local shelters for animals that would need a haven after the latest devastating hurricane blew through the region. Hurricane Delta, the 10th named storm to make landfall in the United States in 2020, dropped more than 15 inches of rain in parts of Louisiana and Texas.
As Hurricane Laura was developing into a real threat, our Emergency Rescue Team began reaching out to our partner shelters in Louisiana and Texas to see what help we could provide. As always, supplies were at the top of the list, and clearing the shelters of as many homeless dogs and cats as we could to make room for those that would be displaced from their homes and families by this devastating storm.
At just 12-weeks-old, Nubia was surrendered to the overcrowded Animal Care Centers (ACC) in New York City. It was clear she could not bear weight on her right leg. The staff at ACC immediately put out a plea for another shelter to take her in, with the hope they could somehow help this beautiful girl.
An urgent call came in about a young kitten found in a backyard in the Adirondacks that couldn’t walk at all. The staff at the Adirondack Cat Rescue and Adoption Center, part of our North Country Initiative in Glens Falls, N.Y. went immediately to pick her up.
Our Rescue Team arrived back at our Port Washington, NY, campus late Sunday afternoon with more than 50 dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens that were saved from the path of Hurricane Dorian and possible euthanasia. Staff and volunteers waited to comfort them and offer food, water, bedding and quiet places where they could rest after their long journey.
Cranberry has been loving life in her new home. So much so, her new family have renamed her “Freyja” after the goddess of love in Norse mythology. “She is doing really well! She's adjusted completely and is already spoiled. She has compete control of the house,” says Mark, Freyja’s newly adopted Dad.
As the Florida Panhandle recovers from the devastation caused by the record-breaking winds and flooding of Hurricane Michael, our Emergency Rescue Team headed south – equipped with a Mobile Rescue Unit stocked with food, water, litter, and essential supplies to aid the people and animals left in the storm’s unforgiving wake.