iPawz

Pet victims of tornadoes are finally surfacing

Pets lost during the recent Midwest tornadoes are beginning to emerge from rubble, likely in search of food and their owners. Dogs, cats, horses, cattle, rabbits and even chickens are being rescued and taken to shelters where they are treated for injuries. Attempts are being made to find their owners.

Animal rescue groups have also been gathering food across the state for pets and beyond."It's not only for dogs and cats, but horses, cattle, rabbits, chickens, any kind of farm animals. There's a great need for food," said volunteer Trish Roehm.

Shelters are working together and using Facebook to post pictures of lost pets in hopes of reuniting them with their families.

WRTV-TV (Indianapolis)

Animal Shelters and Rescues Needing Help During Hurricane Irene

Any help needed by Animal Shelters or Rescues after Hurricane Irene (volunteers, supplies, etc ) Please put City and State first, organization and what is needed at this link*.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Animal-Shelters-and-Rescues-Needing-Help-During-Hurricane-Irene/142937325796825

*iPawz.com has not verified or guaranteed sources.

 

 

Dog stays by his injured dog-friend after tsunami in Japan

This video might make you cry...
This heartwarming video shows a shaking and muddy spaniel wanders amid the rubble trying to lead rescuers to his injured friend in the nightmarish landscape after the earthquake and tsunami wrecked Japan 6 days ago. To summarize the mens’ conversation: at first they thought the injured dog was dead but after realizing it was alive they immediately called a vet for assistance for both dogs.

CNN is reporting that both dogs have received medical attention. The injured dog is currently at a veteranarian getting care and the loyal dog friend is at a shelter.

Two dogs defy the wave, survive tsunami in Japan

The massive tsunami destroyed most of the neighborhood in Sendai where Kayo Kikuchi and her father live. But somehow their two dogs, Towa and Melody, survived.

When the tsunami warnings sounded after the massive earthquake that struck Japan on Friday, Masaki Kikuchi sprinted upstairs to grab his sleeping 12-year-old daughter before racing away to escape the rushing waters.

In the backyard tied to a small shed, Mr. Kikuchi left behind two dogs: Towa, a two-year-old Sheltie and Melody, a one-year-old Golden Retriever. Mr. Kikuchi assumed the giant tsunami that flattened his neighbors' homes and whisked away their cars probably killed Towa and Melody too.

But Towa and Melody had other ideas. They somehow broke free from the ropes tying them to the shed and ran up outdoor stairs to the second floor of Mr. Kikuchi's house. And then they waited and waited. "I don't know how they survived," said Mr. Kikuchi.

full story here

Resort to donate pet hair clippings to aid oil spill effort in Gulf of Mexico

You shampoo your hair, because hair collects oil. That means it can collect petroleum oil spills too. Over 300,000 pounds of hair are cut each day in the US–not to mention all the clippings from pet groomers.

Pet Paradise Resort, an upscale pet boarding, daycare and grooming resort, will start collecting and donating pet hair clippings from all 13 of their resort locations to help with the oil spill cleanup effort in the Gulf of Mexico. Pet Paradise will be working with Matter of Trust, who creates the hair booms to soak up the oil.

Matter of Trust has about a dozen locations along the Gulf Coast where the hair, along with used nylon stockings, is made into booms which help soak up spilled oil. It is estimated that one pound of dog hair can soak up one quart of oil in one minute. On average there is about 2600 oil spills a year.

“We saw what was occurring in our backyard (the Gulf) and knew we had to do something to help,” explains Fred Goldsmith CEO Pet Paradise Resort. “We are thrilled to assist in this current oil spill cleanup effort, just by shipping off our pet hair clippings we collect in our grooming salons. Companywide we collect over 100 pounds of hair a week, so we know we will be able to make a tremendous impact on this effort and future efforts to clean up oil spills.”

Pet Paradise Resort will start shipping collected pet hair to Matter of Trust’s warehouses located along the Gulf of Mexico and in San Francisco. The company has grooming salons in all 13 resorts located in Texas, Louisiana, Florida and North Carolina.

About Pet Paradise
Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., Pet Paradise was formed in 2002 and currently has 13 facilities in operation of which nine are located throughout Florida; two are in Houston, and one each in New Orleans and Charlotte.

The Pet Paradise facilities include spacious dog and cat boarding suites as well as day care and grooming services. All facilities are Hurricane Category 3 safety rated and serve as pet evacuation sites in the event of mandatory hurricane evacuations.

Humane Society Monitoring Disaster in Haiti

From HSUS:

January 19, 2010

Amid the fast-changing and round-the-clock relief efforts for Haiti, Humane Society International has assembled a team of trained veterinary experts to enter Port au Prince in the coming 48 hours. The team representing HSI, The HSUS and the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Assn., is partnering with a group in the Dominican Republic, Veterinary Care & Humane Services, Caribbean Project (VCHS).

Our HSI/HSUS/HSVMA field responders include a French-speaking veterinarian and a paramedic trained in disaster response and animal handling. They will be accompanied by two veterinary technicians from VCHS and a translator. The team will provide immediate animal care as it can, and also assess conditions for animals in the capitol city and surrounding areas. As circumstances permit, our experts will also advise emergency and relief workers on extra steps they might take in the coming days to alleviate the suffering of animals while the desperate work to help the island’s human population continues.

HSUS deploys team after deadly tornadoes

MACON COUNTY, Tenn. — At the request of local authorities, The Humane Society of the United States has deployed its disaster services strike team, including experienced animal handlers and emergency shelter managers and its shelter and operations trailers from Florida and Maryland, to assist in the aftermath of the deadliest tornadoes in the United States in more than two decades. The storms hit Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee.

Already, The HSUS has picked up dozens of injured and frightened animals and is housing them in its shelter transport vehicle at the Macon County Fairgrounds. And many more displaced animals are known to be wandering around in Tennessee, where The HSUS is supplementing overtaxed local resources.

"We have been working under the direction of Tennessee DART (Disaster Animal Response Team), to perform field rescue, and provide emergency sheltering and medical help," said Scotlund Haisley, senior director of disaster services at The HSUS. "We've been assigned to handle the needs of pets."

In 2006 and 2007, The HSUS saved more than 16,000 animals from abusive or neglectful situations, fighting rings or natural disasters.

Since the storm as subsided, more and more animals are coming out of hiding and need attention. One of those is "Toto," a Jack Russell Terrier who "fell from the sky," according to the Tennessee citizen who brought him to the HSUS' mobile shelter.

Katrina victim wins case, gets dog back

It's now a year and a half after Hurricane Katrina devastated the US.

On the pet rescue front, we've heard happy reunion stories as well as sad stories of pets who still remain missing.

Many pets have found a happy home with a foster family. Some of these families still have hope of reuniting their foster pet with its owner.

Situations like Pablo's, described below, have now been sparks of heated debate - the foster family's protection over a pet's identity and the length of time a pet has now been away from its owner.

Pablo, a dog rescued during Hurricane Katrina, had his custody dispute come to an end this month, with a Superior Court Judge ruling that the dog should be returned to its owner, who now lives in Lafayette, La.

Paula Duming's dog, Pablo, had been adopted by a family who claimed that Duming was trying to claim a dog who was not hers. Duming found the dog she believed to be hers with the aid of a volunteer, who was helping hurricane victims find their pets.

The dog, which Duming photographed on the roof of her mobile home when she was being evacuated, was picked up after the storm and eventually transferred to a shelter in Phoenix.

That shelter, Animals Benefit Club, placed the dog with Wendy Shieh and Dustin Jones, and paid for the couple's legal counsel. Duming said Dee Kotinas of the Animals Benefit Club told her during a phone call that she had the wrong dog. But Duming persisted. Best Friends filed suit six months ago.

Dark Water Rising: Hurricane Katrina Animal Rescues

This DVD was just brought to our attention and looks amazing:
Dark Water Rising:  Hurricane Katrina Animal Rescues is a newly released 75-minute documentary film by Mike Shiley

Over 50,000 dogs and cats were left behind in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as FEMA required that all animals be left behind in the mandatory evacuation. This forced separation created America’s first-ever major animal rescue.

A dedicated and compassionate group of volunteer rescuers and animal welfare groups from around the world risked their lives to sledgehammer down doors and brave toxic floodwaters in a truly heroic effort to save nearly 10,000 animals.

Rescuers came from all walks of life and backgrounds to help out.  From passionate animal activists to prison inmates, an entire cross section of America interrupted their daily routines to do the right thing in face of incredible odds.

This film tells many uplifting stories of hope and survival as animal companions (pets) are reunited with their owners while other lucky animals find loving new homes. Dark Water Rising is a film about hope and survival in the face of the one of the worst natural disasters in American history.

If disaster strikes: people will not be forced to abandon pets

The U.S. Senate unanimously approved a Senate substitute to H.R. 3858, the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act.

The PETS Act, introduced in the House by U.S. Reps. Tom Lantos (D-CA) and Chris Shays (R-CT) and in the Senate by U.S. Senators Ted Stevens (R-AK) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), will "require the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to ensure that state and local emergency preparedness operational plans address the needs of individuals with household pets and service animals following a major disaster or emergency."

Many activists and rescue groups lobbied Congress, including the HSUS national advertising campaign to pass this legislation quickly to keep people and pets together next time disaster strikes.