Save the Lives of Shelter Pets in North America

Thank you so much to everyone who donated to help the animal victims of Hurricane Sandy. Here are just a few of the ways we're helping.

Westchester Humane Society got a disaster grant from the Petfinder Foundation to care for the animals it took in because of Hurricane Sandy. Board member Irma Jansen wrote to us about one of those refugees, a Doberman/American Staffordshire Terrier mix named Storm (pictured).

This is Storm, one of the 18 animals the Westchester Humane Society in Harrison rescued from New York City. Storm came from Staten Island the day before the hurricane hit.

They were evacuating shelters and were overcrowded. In order to help prevent a lot of animals from being euthanized, we rescued a total of 18 dogs and cats.

Storm, named in "honor" of the hurricane, was saved from Sandy and did not seem to care that a week after the hurricane, a snow storm hit our area! It has been quite a week in the NYC area.

She loves the snow, this 2-year-old girl! She is an absolute sweetheart and we are happy we were able to have saved her. Thank you so much for making this rescue possible!

Some of the other shelters and rescue groups receiving disaster grants in Sandy’s wake include:

• Humane Society of Atlantic County in Atlantic City, NJ, which was badly flooded but nevertheless is caring for both its own adoptable pets and those belonging to local residents in need. (Read more about HSAC’s disaster grant here.)

• Tails of Love Animal Rescue, Inc., in Staten Island, NY, which lost heat and power and suffered damage to its roof and outdoor kennels, and also needed money for food, blankets, a generator, food bowls (since staff could not wash them without hot water) and cleaning supplies.

• Seer Farms, Inc., in Jackson, NJ. “We took in over 50 animals in the first weekend after the storm, which is an approximately 10% increase in our population, and we are taking in new animals every day who were either rescued from abandoned homes or brought by their owners who are living in shelters,” says owner Laura Pople. “We lost power for several days and spent several thousand dollars on tree removal.”

• Abandoned Angels Animal Rescue in Columbus, NJ, which took in pets for people whose homes had flooded and will care for them until their families can find housing for themselves and their pets, or find them new homes if their guardians can’t take them back.

• Helping Every Animal Live Society, Inc. in Lodi, NJ, which needed to relocate to a safer building. “We lost all or vaccinations and antibiotics that needed refrigeration. The river swept away many of our crates and destroyed pallets of dog food,” says vice president Benjamin Ortiz. “This grant will be used solely to relocate our rescues to a safe and healthy facility.”

• Animal Rescue R Us, also in Lodi. “We lost crates, bedding, food and supplies due to damage from flood,” says president Christina Chavis. The grant will allow the shelter to replace those items to care for its 20 adoptable pets.

We are able to help these organizations continue their lifesaving work thanks to donors like you. Thank you to all who gave — every little bit helps.

Links:

• Learn more about the Petfinder Foundation
• Read our blog