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Hurricane, Cat Food & Volunteers for ARNO
p l e
a s e c r o s s p o s t
ARNO Prepares for 2006 Hurricane Season
source:Charlotte Bass-Lilly, ARNO,
arnocharlotte@cox.net
ARNO is making evacuation plans for our shelter pets and
are working on an agreement with an out-of-state humane
organization to house our animals. Meanwhile we have been asked
by the LA/SPCA to assist with pet/people evacuations for the
City of New Orleans. Orleans Parish has mandated evacuation of
people with their pets, even before the passage of SB-607, and
has included in the City's evacuation plans an outlet for people
with pets who have no other means of transportation. The
people/pet evacuation will be headed up by the city's animal
control facility - the LA/SPCA. ARNO will be working under the
authority of the LA/SPCA.
ARNO will
assist the LA/SPCA with the city's pet/people evacuation and
then will evacuate our personal pets and shelter pets to safe
ground. We will then return to the city to be assigned by the
LA/SPCA to where we are needed.
Volunteers are needed by ARNO to help us man the pet/people
stations. If you are interested we ask that you please take a
few online courses, ICS 100 & 200 and NIMS 700, which will
introduce you to the Incident Command Structure in times of
emergency. These are free courses online and can be accessed
through the FEMA website which is
http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is100.asp. Next
year it is anticipated that more courses will be added to the
requirements of anyone who is aiding within the humane community
with pet evacuation and/or animal rescue. Completion of these
courses will result in a certificate issued by FEMA stating that
you have taken these courses successfully. Please consider
completing these online courses by the end of June or mid-July
if you wish to be involved with any type of pre- or
post-disaster animal rescue in Louisiana in 2006.
If you wish to volunteer for ARNO in our evacuation/rescue
efforts (pre- and post-disaster) please send a short bio of
what you do in your 'real' life, as well as any info on what you
have done within the humane community including any disaster
rescue effort involvement. Volunteers can be from Louisiana or
from any other state. Don't forget to include your contact
information. Send info to
ar-no@cox.net and put 'DISASTER VOLUNTEER' in the subject
line.
Dry Cat
Food Remains Big Need
Donations continue to be desperately needed for pet food,
particularly dry cat food. ARNO uses about one pallet a day of
dry cat food, at a cost of $250 per pallet. Wal-Mart cards are
another way to donate funds for pet food, as their prices remain
the best among the local retailers.
We continue our food/water stations in over 40 sectioned areas
of Orleans, Plaquemines and St. Bernard Parishes. ARNO has made
some huge dents in the animal population on the street. Thanks
to our good friends at Alley Cat Allies with their Feline Frenzy
spay/neuter program, over 1100 cats were spay/neutered and
innoculated over a three-week period. ARNO's TNR
(trap/neuter/release) efforts continue, but Feline Frenzy
offered opportunities to not only the street animals, but the
colony managers as well. There were over 100 traps out each
night to make the most of the 'frenzy' and area participating
vet clinics, including on the Northshore of the Lake. ARNO was
proud to play a large role in the coordination of this event,
and we owe a big kudos to our friends at Alley Cat Allies, as
well as participating vet clinics.
A shot of a Siamese-mix feral kitty anticipating supper from one
of our feeders. ©2006 Lisa McComiskey)
ARNO also responds to trapping needs of cats or dogs that
are in danger, either from public complaints that we always
worry could lead to abuse, or to animals that are sickly.
Priority is always given to those who need immediate medical
care, including pregnant females.
Recently we responded to a request from a colony feeder who
found two kittens dead at a food/water station. We trapped the
remaining kittens and cats in this area and requested a necropsy
from LSU on the two little kittens who died, assuming they had
been poisoned. They had not been poisoned, they had died of
intestinal parasites. One more reason to get the babies off the
street before they succumb to something as treatable as
parasites. ARNO currently has about 50 kittens in our shelter
(90% are being treated for intestinal parasites), down from
close to 100 two weeks ago. The remaining kittens will be
adopted out once healthy, or like the first 50, will go to a
cold-climate sanctuary that is looking for kittens needed for
adoptions. It is hard to imagine that there are climates that no
strays survive the winters, unlike the sub-tropical south where
breeding season is year round!
If you wish to volunteer even a few hours a week for food/water
please contact
arnofoodwater@yahoo.com and put "FOOD/WATER VOLUNTEER" in
subject line.
State of the Animals After Katrina
ARNO has and continues forming relationships with humane
organizations all over the country to selectively adopt from one
to six dogs that we have on hand in our shelter or in foster
care. Our local conduit for our dogs temporarily closed in April
due to self-imposed quarantine, and that has made it tough for
us to move dogs out of our shelter and refill from the street,
as well as the fact that most of the dogs we rescue from the
street are heartworm positive and must be treated over a period
of 30-60 days...both of these situations has slowed down our dog
trapping efforts on the street. There is no Celebration Station
to hold animals for us anymore, we have to be the hold agency
until the animals are finished all treatments and given a clean
bill of health. ARNO still traps dogs based on emergency
situations, but until the end of the summer when the local
sanctuary opens back up we are in a bind for moving more dogs
'in and out.'
ARNO encourages any interested groups that can assist with
transports to reach out to us. We are in communication with
several groups, but we welcome any untapped friendships to
assist in moving the animals that await rescue. The support we
have received from the national and Canadian community has been
incredible and we look forward to further development of these
relations. The line for rescue for the animals of the storm is
long. It will take years for the greater New Orleans region to
resume pre-storm animal control conditions. Transports remain a
vital element to recovery, and only transports of animals in
full health are transported out of state.
Our foster network has helped tremendously with fostering and
adopting out animals that are ready for a permanent home, once
the search for their owners has been exhausted by those infamous
pet detectives all over the country, i.e. Stealth and No Animal
Left Behind. ARNO has also helped with medical care of Katrina
surrenders from outlying shelters, where the surrender rate is
up 35-50% because of displaced New Orleans area residents who
cannot find housing that will allow pets.
ARNO has also taken many a pet from area residents who do not
have housing, some actually living in their vehicles because
there is no where else to live. These pets are put in permanent
foster care (when available) to allow the original caretakers to
retrieve their pets when they are back on their feet. The human
situation in this area has not seen much improvement since the
hurricane.
Anita from No Animal Left Behind is promoting putting together
the families that are still searching for their pets with the
pets who are still searching for their families. A great
idea...both the pets and the people certainly need each other
for comfort and love. Yet there are still reunions between
people and their pets happening all the time... read PeeWee's
story on our website's homepage for a glimpse into a recent
reunion.
www.animalrescueneworleans.org
Even with our 'slowdown' on dog trapping ARNO has managed to
trap or rescue and medically treat more than 950 animals in the
last three months. That's an average of more than 10 animals a
day. These are animals that probably would not have survived
without our help, your donations and volunteer efforts.
Volunteers Are Much-Needed and Our Lifeblood
ARNO can only do as much as our volunteers allow us to do.
It does take donations and funding to buy food, pay our vets'
bills, pay rent and utilities, etc.... but it is the volunteers
who are out there filling the food/water stations, taking care
of the animals in the shelter, playing with the dogs to
socialize them for their final home, hand-feeding kittens too
young to eat on their own, cleaning cages, unloading deliveries,
washing towels, walking dogs, cleaning the office and bathrooms,
working on computer records, answering emails, picking up phone
messages... the list is endless. The list is also impossible for
us to accomplish without volunteers.
High-school students and those who are required to do
community service hours please come and volunteer! Out of
towners, you have been the saving grace of animal rescue since
Katrina...your numbers made it possible to rescue the ten
thousand plus animals that were rescued in the four months
following Katrina. ARNO still needs you...please consider coming
back for a long weekend, a week, two weeks, a month...whatever
you can manage. We have a great core of people who eagerly await
to warmly welcome you to ARNO and our city. Local volunteers are
always welcome and we are specifically looking for locals that
can give us four to twelve hours a week on a regular schedule.
Our three main needs for humans are: food/water volunteers
(vehicle needed), animal care/kennel workers (experience a
plus), and those who are computer-friendly, good typists, and
spreadsheet familiar (Xcel).
ARNO also has need to transport animals to and from vet clinics,
as well as out of town transports. We are looking for private
pilots who could fly three to four dogs inside their plane to
San Francisco. While American Airlines is still helping us with
flying animals, the summer months bring problems of heat after
9am in the morning. So no cargo holds used during the summer
months for living creatures.
Pictured is "Scout" (now Henry Harcourt Larson) with his new
family and Pug siblings. "Scout" was pre-adopted by a family in
California with arrangements made through a San Francisco-based
humane organization.
A good friend to ARNO, the
Omni Royal Orleans, is offering four-star luxury hotel rooms
in the French Quarter for $79 a night (single or double
occupancy). Bring your family and they can luxuriate in the
hotel and explore the Quarter while you come and fulfill your
soul with giving to the animals. Actually whole families do come
and voluneer at ARNO and leave feeling like they experienced a
life-changing event together as a family. A side bonus for sun
worshipers: Great tans are readily available doing food and
water during the summer in New Orleans! Sun-smart folks bring
your SPF50 and a cool, wide-brimmed hat for shade. For the Omni
Royal Orleans offer, here is the link with the instructions on
how to get the great rate http://www.animalrescueneworleans.org/images/OMNI2.jpg If
you want to volunteer in any capacity, please send an email with
your contact information and when you would like to volunteer,
put VOLUNTEER in the subject line and send to
ar-no@cox.net.
Register Now for Alley Cat Allies Feline Forum June 22-24
Workshops for Mississippi and Louisiana animal control officers,
humane organizations, caregivers, and residents who just care
about cats. Come hear and learn from national experts on
creating a bright future for feral cats. Alley Cat Allies has
been in Louisiana and Mississippi since Katrina and they have
done a remarkable job of helping all of us with feral cats. If
you would like more information on the workshops, experts and
their topics, please go to http://www.animalrescueneworleans.org/alleycat.html
The contact information, including a phone number, is listed at
this link. Advance registration is required.
source Charlotte Bass-Lilly, ARNO,
arnocharlotte@cox.net
for more information on any of the above items please contact
ar-no@cox.net
"Working together
to rescue one-by-one until there are none"
Posted June 20, 2006 |
