Our Rescue Team was on the phone with our shelter partners in Louisiana and Texas even before Hurricane Delta made landfall. We knew that these communities were still struggling in the wake of Hurricane Laura and that meant more animals would find themselves hungry, wandering the streets, and in desperate need of our help.
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.
“The devastation caused by Hurricane Laura, and now Hurricane Delta, enabled us to connect with shelters in Louisiana and Texas and develop a strong relationship with our newest rescue partner, PAWS4Life,” said Sylvia Ottaka, Senior Director of Rescue and Community Outreach. “We know that this relationship will continue to grow and together we will be able to help save the lives of many, many homeless animals in Louisiana and the surrounding region.”
Our dedicated Rescue Team rushed to get on the road to meet PAWS4Life and load our Mobile Rescue Unit with 44 canines collected from Bossier City Animal Control, TOTS Animal Rescue of Louisiana, SPCA of Polk County, Friends of Marshall Animals, and Natchitoches Humane Society of Texas.
The Mobile Rescue Unit arrived home on Wednesday, October 14th, with pups and dogs of all ages and sizes. There were Hound, Retriever, and Terrier mixes. They included young, adorable Terrier mix puppies like Modea and Dolls, who were lucky to be alive as they were found wandering on a busy street in Texas. Also Mickey, a 10-year-old Rat Terrier mix, who was rescued from the streets and brought to the Bossier City Animal Control shelter. And Sassy, a six-month-old, gentle Miniature Pinscher mix who sat on the side of a Louisiana road for three days until a kind man picked her up before she got hit by a car.
Once all the pups and dogs are comfortably settled in and given food and water, the veterinarians will examine each one and take care of all their medical needs before they go up for adoption.
Our Rescue Team is already preparing to go back on the road in a few days to transport up to 35 more puppies and dogs, as well as 15 cats from the storm-ravaged region back to the safety of our no-kill campus. When they return they will also bring a Mobile Unit filled with supplies donated by our generous supporters.