New Orleans Shelter Animals Evacuated Days In Advance of Gustav

Article and photos by Carreen Maloney

While most New Orleans citizens battled long lines at shops and gas stations in anticipation of Hurricane Gustav’s impending wrath, Louisiana SPCA’s staff and volunteers were preoccupied with queues of another sort. A steady stream of animals stepped up one by one to be loaded into idling air-conditioned trucks waiting to whisk them away to safe, high ground.

“The focus is on taking care of the animals, and that puts everything else out of your mind,” says Shelly Patton, LA/SPCA’s facility and IT manager. “It shows the great love and compassion we have for the animals. Each person here also has their own families and their own pets to worry about.”

As Gustav ripped through the ocean gathering strength earlier this week, staff and dedicated volunteers put their own evacuation arrangements on the back burner, relegating personal escape plans to the last minute. Before worrying about themselves, they made certain that their helpless charges were en route to safety. Long hours and backbreaking work didn’t deter these selfless heroes as they worked steadily and without complaints in the baking summer sun. Animals were brought out on leashes one at a time and placed into carriers, which were loaded into the back of large refrigerated cube vans.

LA SPCA closed its doors to the public on Wednesday, Aug. 27, when weather forecasts tracked Hurricane Gustav heading straight for New Orleans. By the evening of Friday, Aug. 29th , the bulk of the animals had already been cleared out of the Mardi Gras Boulevard facility, which houses 350 at full capacity.

Spirits were buoyed when rescue groups descended on the LA SPCA to help, taking Great Danes, Bull Mastiffs, Pekingese and Labradors under their wings and assuring their passage to safety.

“When people take the dogs that are sick, the ones that are harder to adopt, it warms my heart,” Patton says. “The rescue groups came and helped on such short notice. It was amazing.”

At times the animals in the trucks awaiting departure barked and meowed up a storm, and at other times they fell silent, as if unsure what there was to yelp about. They looked intently from behind the bars of their transport kennels at the people guiding them into place, occasionally sticking a tongue out to lick a hand, or giving a friendly head cock, as if they knew they were being helped.

Shelter workers showed heart, gently encouraging frightened animals to reluctantly step into travel cages, their tails between their legs and their hearts hammering as they waited nervously for the unknown journey ahead.

Most of the animals that were up for adoption at Louisiana SPCA are traveling to the SPCA of Texas, located in Dallas, where they will find new homes. The others went to a temporary shelter assembled in Baton Rouge that will shelter almost 100 animals. Dogs being held by LA SPCA for court cases related to cruelty, neglect, or aggression must return to the shelter after Hurricane Gustav passes, as do animals interrupted in their 7-day stray stay, a minimum grace period given so their guardians can search for them.

“It’s going really well,” Patton says. “Part of the staff is already in Baton Rouge working their butts off setting up a temporary shelter.”

Besides the physical demands of the evacuation, there is the resulting paper blizzard to contend with. Each animal has to be processed with a change of ownership to the receiving shelter. An evacuation is also financially draining for LA SPCA, costing well into the thousands for each.

Some members of the shelter team have been through this drill many times. Since 1998, when Hurricane Georges ravaged the city, LA SPCA has been evacuating every time a Category 3 hurricane or stronger threatens New Orleans. That meant the shelter evacuated two or more times a year until Katrina, when the fatal and devastating 2005 blow was followed by an unexpected gift – two years of light storm seasons with no evacuations.

Perhaps it is the unusual shelter job description belonging to Heather Rigney that best indicates the organization’s commitment to protecting the animals in their care in times of rain or shine. Rigney, known as the disaster preparedness coordinator, came on board after Katrina.

“She’s very tuned in to the details,” Patton says.

Tragically, Patton reports that some pets sadly had to be euthanized. Sick animals were euthanized so they wouldn’t risk contaminating the whole truckload. Some pit bulls also lost their lives because communities are unwilling to accept them.

“It’s been really tough on the staff, because some of these dogs are amazing. Their only crime is that they are a pit,” Patton says.

Despite moving the bulk of the animals out, the shelter will be full again within days of re-opening due to overpopulation. Staff will make the most of the momentary lull to sanitize and deep-clean the place in preparation for a new batch of animals.

Now that the shelter evacuation is nearly wrapped up, LA/SPCA is turning its assistance to the special-needs people in the city needing help to escape with their pets, such as the disabled, or those without transportation.

“It’s not only our own shelter animals we’re concerned with. We need to help the people in the city evacuate with their animals too,” Patton says.

Memories of Hurricane Katrina, compounded by Gustav’s deadly approach coming so close to Friday’s three-year anniversary date, linger throughout the city. But Patton says shelter staff are too busy working to dwell on the trauma of past events now, though she wonders if the pain might sink in to haunt them once the high alert passes.

Thanks to good planning and experience, LA SPCA was able to get all its animals out safely before Katrina struck, but the storm stranded many thousands of owned animals alone in the city to perish. For the first time in history, the city is not forcing people to leave their pets behind. Instead, they have been factored into the evacuation plan.

“If the pets are small enough, they can sit on their owner’s laps [in carriers] on the bus, but for bigger pets, the idea is for them to be in a truck following the bus the humans are on so they’re always together,” says Gloria Dauphin, an executive assistant at LA SPCA.

While some workers shuttled animals far from danger, others in the 47-member team led by CEO Ana Zorrilla did community outreach closer to home. Dean Howard, LA/SPCA’s development director, brought 40 dogs over from a shelter in St. Bernard’s Parish on Friday.

“The city is definitely better prepared this time,” Patton says, adding that officials have finally awakened to the important role pets play as members of the family in the lives of citizens.

She urges people to take care to make plans for themselves and their animals before it’s too late.

“The biggest thing is that if it’s not safe for you, it’s not safe for your pet. Please take your pets with you.”
 

Carreen Maloney has been a writer and animal rescuer for 20 years. She runs Fuzzy Town, a toy and pet products company. She can be reached at carreen@fuzzytown.com.
 

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