LEAGUE TAKES IN 10 DOGS SURRENDERED BY MISSISSIPPI FLOOD VICTIMS

May 27, 2011

The Washington Animal Rescue League (the League) is caring for 10 dogs who wound up at the Natchez Adams County Humane Society (NACHS) in Natchez, Mississippi, after their owners lost their homes to flooding. The NACHS shelter asked for help relocating and adopting dogs after they were overwhelmed by relinquished animals whom people could no longer care for.

The homeless dogs are being transported to the Washington, DC, area by the Humane Society of the Unites States, which sent a team of rescuers to operate an emergency animal shelter in Natchez. Among the dogs coming to the League are Bologna and Cheese, two young mixed beagles found running along the Mississippi riverbank and brought to the emergency shelter by the local sheriff’s department.

The dogs designated for the League are reported to be in good condition overall, with no major health problems. Nonetheless the League’s Medical Center will give each of them a comprehensive medical examination, after which they will be assessed by the behavior and training team prior to being made available for adoption.

“This is the second group of displaced animals that the League has taken in from natural disasters this year,” Dr. Gary Weitzman, the League’s CEO, points out. “We have been responding to disasters ever since Hurricane Katrina, and this form of rescue work has definitely become one of our specialties. It’s now supported by our Disaster Rescue Fund, a new custom-built, 22-foot animal transport vehicle, and a specially designated and trained disaster response team. We are committed to being wherever the animals need us to be. Once there, we will provide them with whatever they need to put the traumas they have experienced behind them and become contented and healthy pets in their new, adoptive homes.”

Other rescued dogs from the same transport are going to the Norfolk SPCA, the Richmond SPCA, Lost Dog and Cat Rescue, and the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area.

The League anticipates that the dogs in their care will be available for adoption at some point in early June.