PRESS RELEASE

Louisiana SPCA In Desperate Need of Support

NEW ORLEANS, LA. (October 5, 2005) – To continue rescuing pets and reuniting them with their owners in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, The Louisiana Society For The Prevention of Cruelty To Animals (LA/SPCA) is asking animal lovers all over the country to dig deep and contribute to the LA/SPCA.

Donations are needed to fund the work the LA/SPCA does and to help build a shelter to help the pets that have not yet been found.

According to LA/SPCA Executive Director Laura Maloney, while volunteer support has come from around the nation over the past five weeks, the assisting agencies are now transitioning the power back to the LA/SPCA.

"We are grateful to have all the volunteer assistance we have had since the hurricane hit," Maloney said. "But as we prepare to start from ground zero in New Orleans, we need more help. Many of our employees, volunteers and donors had no choice but to leave the city when they lost their homes."

The LA/SPCA’s buildings and several vehicles were completely destroyed in the hurricane's aftermath. Maloney estimates the cost of building a new shelter to be at least $4 million, plus the cost of land.

“We need donations to go directly to the LA/SPCA to continue rescuing animals displaced by the hurricane,” said Amber Bethel, LA/SPCA director of development. “We must build a temporary shelter now but also create a fund to establish a permanent building and replace all of our facilities destroyed during the floods.”


Need For Rescue & Shelter More Desperate Than Ever

When some government officials in Louisiana decided to not allow non-human family members to evacuate, companion animals of all type were left behind and had to fend for themselves. Once allowed to enter the city, employees from the LA/SPCA immediately went to work rescuing animals and caring for them while at the same time identifying them and working to reunite them with their owners.

This at the same time that shelter workers were learning their homes too were destroyed. In spite of this hardship, more than 8,000 dogs, cats and other animals have been rescued by the LA/SPCA with the assistance of HSUS and the ASPCA and other animal welfare agencies since Katrina passed.


Why Donate Directly?

While donations for other, leading national charities are very high, the LA/SPCA is not directly benefiting from those. “People are extremely generous and may not realize that the money they give to national agencies may not come down here to us,” Bethel said. “The storm has created an extraordinary amount of work for us, and we really need help.”


How To Donate

To contribute to the LA/SPCA on line go to www.la-spca.org and follow the link on the home page. To mail a contribution, send it to: Louisiana SPCA, P.O. Box 127, Mandeville, LA. 70470.



The Louisiana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (LA/SPCA) is a private non-profit organization dedicated to the elimination of animal suffering. Chartered in 1888, it is the oldest and most comprehensive animal welfare organization in the state of Louisiana providing care and basic medical services for approximately 11,000 homeless and unwanted animals each year. The LA/SPCA is a membership organization that depends upon the support of the public.
 

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