Written by Jeff Mackey
Staffers from its Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters and Washington, D.C., office have endured the impact of Hurricane Sandy's winds and storm surge, but that's not stopping PETA from doing everything in its power to help the animals in the storm's path. Community Animal Project fieldworkers are on call 24/7 and have already been hard at work helping animals left to fend for themselves against the storm and the flooding.
Of course, the best way to protect animals is to prevent them from being put in harm's way in the first place. That's why PETA sent out emergency-preparedness alerts to media across Virginia, North Carolina, New Jersey, and other at-risk areas before the storm to remind guardians to be ready to allow animal companions to stay indoors and to take them along if forced to evacuate.
Unfortunately, not everyone has heeded this advice, and frightened, vulnerable animals like the dog you see here in Newport News, Virginia, have been left tied up outside to face the storm's onslaught. So PETA has sent urgent requests to the governors of all states likely to be affected by Sandy asking them to protect all their citizens—including the four-legged ones—by issuing immediate "no chaining" orders for their states.
The orders should require that all dogs be allowed to stay indoors and not be left chained outside, where they may drown, freeze, be strangled, or get hit by flying debris in the midst of the hurricane, as happened to Smokey, who died alone outside during Hurricane Irene on the chain that he had been attached to since puppyhood.
No matter what the governors decide, though, if Sandy is headed your way, please allow your dogs and cats to stay indoors with you, be prepared to take them with you if you have to leave, and urge your neighbors to do the same!
Written by Michelle Kretzer
By now, we hope everyone is prepared as Hurricane Sandy batters the eastern United States and Canada with gale-force winds, massive walls of water, and, in some spots, snow. While we wish that everyone who evacuated would have taken their animals with them and that those who are staying will have allowed their animals indoors to ride out the storm in safety, we know that not everyone understands that domesticated animals cannot survive "on instinct" and that they stand little chance if left outside. Especially during natural disasters, animal advocates must be vigilant about helping chained dogs, "outdoor cats," and rabbits left outside in hutches.
If you know of animals kept on chains or in hutches or pens, please look out for them! You may be their only hope. People do not always do what's needed, and animals die miserably during these weather emergencies. If necessary, beg guardians to allow their animals indoors until the storm is over. If the guardian refuses, be persuasive and ask to take the animals to your home and then return them when it's safe. If all else fails, note the animals' condition and location and call animal control, the police, or other local authorities and implore them to use their power to rescue the animals. If people have left and you must take emergency action to save an animal in rising waters or another situation, then you must do what you need to do.
PETA's vans at our Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters and Washington, D.C., offices are stocked with food, medicine, and other supplies, and we will be diligently combing the surrounding areas searching for any animals in need. In times of disaster, we rely on our generous Animal Emergency Fund donors to make these rescues possible. If you are able, please consider supporting our Hurricane Sandy rescue efforts.
Most of us would never consider leaving our four-legged family members behind in an emergency, and it seems that people a century ago had similar sentiments. On the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, we are finally hearing about the dogs onboard—and the guardians who refused to leave them.
Widener University in Pennsylvania is hosting a centennial Titanic exhibit, part of which focuses on the twelve dogs who were onboard the ship. The three who survived were small dogs whose guardians smuggled them onto lifeboats, likely without the other passengers noticing. Passenger Margaret Hays reportedly got her dog, Lady, onto the lifeboat by wrapping her in a blanket.
At least one of the Titanic's passengers jumped out of a lifeboat when she was told her dog couldn't accompany her. Ann Elizabeth Isham refused to leave her Great Dane behind, and days later, a recovery ship found the body of a woman still clinging to a large dog, which all accounts identify as Isham and her beloved Great Dane.
More recently, when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, PETA rescuers saw stories similar to Isham's repeated again and again. But these distraught guardians were forced to evacuate and leave their animals behind. Many animals didn't make it, although some were rescued and returned to their families after months of searching by PETA and other animal organizations.
The tragedy of Hurricane Katrina forced the issue of animals suffering during disasters into the national spotlight and resulted in the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act, which requires state and local disaster plans to include provisions for safely accommodating animal companions in the event of a major disaster or emergency.
We've seen the benefits of the nation's heightened awareness of the need for disaster planning for animals in the wake of the recent Navy jet crash in Virginia Beach, Virginia, which destroyed or damaged 40 apartments. Virginia Beach Animal Care & Adoption Center immediately spread word to rescue workers that it would take in all displaced animals, and families knew that their animal companions had a safe place to go while they made arrangements.
Many more families are now doing their own advance planning to protect animals in emergencies, including taking the following steps:
Advance planning can't prevent natural disasters, but it can prevent disasters from becoming tragedies for our animal companions.
Greg Cook and his dog, Coco, became Internet sensations when the pictures of their emotional reunion following this month's Category 5 tornado spread like wildfire across Facebook and Twitter. Greg wasn't home when the twister hit in Limestone County, Alabama, and as he made his way through his neighborhood, which the storm had destroyed, he feared he would never see Coco again. When Greg spotted his leveled home among the wreckage, the chances that Coco had survived looked even bleaker.
Greg crawled through a window of what used to be his home and was wading through the piles of debris when he spotted Coco—soaking wet, shaking, and terrified but alive. Greg's emotion at that moment is evident as he tells his story in a video that he shot for PETA to urge guardians to make sure that their animals will be protected in case of a disaster.
Greg and Coco were fortunate—but many other animals and their guardians have not escaped disasters unscathed. Greg encourages all animal guardians to prepare for natural disasters in advance. Here are some top tips:
Written by PETA
As search-and-rescue teams are combing through the wreckage left in six Southern states by the deadliest outbreak of tornadoes in 40 years, PETA is asking rescuers to look out for animal victims too.
In an e-mail sent to rescue team organizers, PETA asked that emergency workers make a quick call to a local animal rescue group if they see animals who are injured, trapped, lost, or abandoned and provide the group with the animals' location. This will allow the local agencies to rescue the animals and reunite them with their loved ones.
The bond between people and their companion animals is very strong, and victims of disasters benefit from knowing that their companion animals are safe.
The time to prepare for keeping yourself and your animals safe in a disaster is now. And to help animal disaster victims, please consider a donation to PETA's Animal Emergency Fund.
Written by Michelle Sherrow
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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