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A Tale of Animal Rescue
October 3, 2005
Well.. I am crying while I type this. I cannot begin
to tell you or even describe what I have witnessed. My heart is
shattered and I am feeling as though it will always be that way. I did
NOT want to leave New Orleans yesterday!! I cried and cried because I
knew I was leaving behind thousands of trapped animals and felt as
though I just hadn't done enough. I can't get the horrible images out of
my head and I can't sleep. I knew this would happen to me as I was fully
aware of what I was getting myself into but I just can't seem to find
any peace. I can still hear the animals crying and dogs screaming in
pain. I can still see the holes in the attics where I knew people had
punched there way through to get out of their flooded homes onto the
roof. My brain keeps flashing the pictures of all of the death I
encountered and I swear I can still smell the rotting stench and even
though I am not there I am still gagging.
New Orleans is a ghost town. All is destroyed. ALL OF IT! All of the
surrounding areas too, Slidell, Chalmette and areas I didn't even get
to. As I walked along the streets emaciated sickly dogs ran around or
dragged themselves, some with wounds and patches of fur gone or all of
their fur gone. Some dogs were so bad we could barely make out what
breed they were. Scared Sick and Starving ALL of them; too scared to
come to us even though we had food. They would run away when they saw
us. We would sometimes spend hours just trying to coax one dog to come
to us. The cats were even worse. Most of these animals have been without
food and clean water for a month. The ground is toxic and the air
stinks. Our eyes and throats would burn and as we worked frantically
knowing time was running out we could feel the symptoms of low grade
fever worried if it would get worse and just exactly how sick were we
going to get from being exposed.
We worked during and after Hurricane Rita with winds howling, rain
pelting and the threat of tornados around us. We wrote our social
security numbers in black felt marker on our arms. Just in case a
tornado came and our bodies needed to be identified. We were told what
to do and what to look out for if all of a sudden the wind stops and it
gets very quiet we were to look up and around if we heard the sound of a
train that meant a tornado was nearby. If we were in the car or outside
we were to stop driving and find a low lying ditch and get down into it
laying on our stomachs with our hands over our heads and pray that you
would not get caught. This worried me because all the ditches were full
of water and most likely alligators. Not much of an option. But we
didn't stop; time was running out.
Every time I kicked in a door I was afraid of what I would find, every
window I crawled through had hell right behind it and I was willing to
crawl right into that hell afraid for my life. I asked myself many times
why I was doing this and what power was driving me so hard making me do
things that I would never otherwise do. We did not have official
uniforms and I was afraid of being shot if one of the Vigilante groups
had spotted me and thought I was a looter. I was afraid that someone was
inside ready to blow me away trying to protect his property, I was
afraid of finding dead bodies and dead animals, I was afraid of the
black mold and muck that crawled up and down the walls, and all over
everything, I was afraid of falling into the muck and getting sick from
it.
It was so hot and even hotter inside of these houses. They were all
locked up tight. The people left thinking they would return in TWO DAYS
just like all of the other times they had evacuated. THEY DID NOT
REALIZE THAT THEY MAY NEVER BE BACK! They left their animals thinking
they would be safe. They left their animals because they were forced to
at gun point in some instances. The water rose so quickly they barely
had time to get themselves out. These people loved their pets and now
not only have they lost everything they now have to live with the guilt
of having had to leave there pets to die. And die they have. We found
dogs hanging from their leashes because their owners didn't realize the
water would go so high and they wanted to come back for them so they
tied them to the porch. We found dead dogs in trees, cats on top of book
shelves, in toilets, rabbits in their hutches and fish in their tanks.
Someone though it would be a good idea to save Pit bulls and put 20 of
them into a school gymnasium, when they were found they were ALL DEAD
they had been eating each other to survive but we were too late.
The facility where the rescued animals I worked with went to Lamar-Dixon
exhibition grounds in Gonzales Louisiana. Since Katrina approx. 10,000
animals have been processed there. After doing the numbers we figure
that is only roughly 10 per cent of the animal population. Currently
1200 animals are being housed there with at least 300 being brought in
each day by the rescuers. Animals are being shipped out all over the
country to different shelters and foster homes.
I don't know how they will ever repair everything. The destruction is
completely unfathomable. The sheer numbers of animals still at large or
trapped inside homes is so overwhelming that many of us who would never,
ever, ever say this in a million years but are beginning to think they
should start euthanizing. And anyone who knows me knows that this is
something that I would never resort to ever but I just don't know what
else can be done. The suffering is unbearable and I know that I myself
would rather be dead than go through what these animals are going
through.
Residents have started to come back to their homes which concerns me
because most of the buildings are so unstable and I am concerned for
everyone's safety. You can hear them screaming when they come home to
see the destruction and all of what they lost for the first time. As we
went door to door searching for animals many of these people came to me
crying and asking for help to find their pets. I have never hugged and
cried with so many strangers in my life and even though these people had
lost everything they came and asked me where I was from. They were
amazed that I had come so far to help them. They would cry and hug me
and thanked God for bringing me to them.
An older couple stopped me in the street as they were driving by. They
asked me if I was rescuing animals I said yes. They asked if I could
help them I said yes. They were both sobbing. They asked if I could go
to their home because their dog was inside, dead. She had been in their
family for 14 years and they had to leave her and now 4 weeks later they
came back and found her dead they told me that they couldn't face the
fact that she had died like that and couldn't go inside until she had
been removed. They wanted me to remove her remains. I couldn't. I wanted
to help them so much but we didn't have time to work on the dead we had
to search for the living. Also we were getting close to curfew and did
not want to be stuck in the city as it gets way too dangerous. They said
thank you, I hugged them both and they drove away I watched them go
wishing there was more I could do.
In all I rescued: 10 cats, 1 Wolf Hybrid dog and 1 Parakeet in his cage.
(I was shocked that the bird was still alive!)
IT WASN'T ENOUGH! I have thoughts that I should have looked harder in
the homes where I found fresh prints and no animals; I forgot to look in
the attics! How stupid is that?! I keep thinking about the houses I
drove past without checking wondering if any animals were trapped inside
and still alive. Why didn't I CHECK THERE? DAMMIT!! This will bother me
forever.
I am sitting here typing feeling anxious, uncomfortable, sad, angry,
frustrated and lonely. I feel that I must go back as soon as possible
and continue searching. When I left the HSUS (United States Humane
Society) was calling for everyone and anyone to come and help rescue
because they had at least 3,000 requests by pet owners that still had
not been done. And I had to leave. it killed me to go and I am having a
hard time forgiving myself for what feels like abandonment of all the
animals and all the people who so desperately need me NOW.
The people of New Orleans are the nicest strongest people I have ever
met. I am in love with all of them and will do whatever I can to
continue to help in any way possible even if I can't make it back. I
will never forget these people or this experience I know my heart will
never ever mend.
Michele Kleine-Deters
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