Hurricane Harvey ~ How To Help Cats In Need

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Hurricane Harvey ~ How To Help Cats In Need

Watching the news about Hurricane Harvey and the utter devestation in Texas and parts of  Louisiana shows that this is one serious storm and it is lingering. The destruction is vast and the images are heartbreaking.

Hurricane Harvey How To Help Cats In Need

People have lost everything and despite all the fancy words this will be their lives for years to come. Recovery from destruction of this magnitude is very slow.

It takes years.

Years.

 

 

There have been great acts of humanity in the saving of human lives, and pets too. There are stories of residents refusing to evacuate because they couldn’t take their pet(s), of pets left behind, of animals found by rescuers. The images and stories are heart wrenching. 

So how to help?

To support disaster reliefs services for the people caught up in the disaster there are the usual agencies who are on the ground and providing support.

  • American Red Cross who are providing food, shelter and much more. ****They also need donations of blood****
  • The Salvation Army
  • The Texas Diaper Bank who are providing packs for the littlest humans caught up in this. This is especially important as diapers aren’t provided by disaster relief services.
  • NPR has a list of many local agencies providing assistance.
  • If you want your donation to go further Google is doing a dollar for dollar match for all contributions raised through their website, going to $1million (to a total of $2million) with the funds heading towards the Red Cross. Why not help them release some of their heady earnings and share it with the victims of this disaster??
    Update – amount of $2,000,000 has been raised!!!

 

 

However, if you want to help relief services for pets who have been displaced there are options on offer as well. Unless you are in the area and can physically donate food, blankets or some of the other things needed the best way to help is a cash donation.

Here is a list of some of the groups helping the animals caught up in the disaster.

  • Austin Pets Alive! is one of the most active animal shelters taking  many animals from locations that are flooded and caring for them. They need cash donations, are looking for foster families to adopt animals they were already looking after. They need litter boxes, flea control, wet food and cleaning supplies. Visit their page for a list of needed items. Or just give cash. Or volunteer!!

 

 

  • The SPCA of Texas is on the ground assisting in many ways and cash donations are needed. In anticipation of the storm they transferred 123 cats to make room for arrivals. They also have a comprehensive list of places that will provide safe locations for owners and pets. If you know anyone affected by the storm please pass on the information. (They are also a recipient of  PetSmart Charities). They also have a Wish List on Amazon with items needed for their ongoing work.

 

  • The SPCA is delivering supplies to shelters who have displaced animals.

 

 

  • Check your local animal shelter. In order to create space for the flood animals cats and dogs are being airlifted out of the shelters they called home to make space for the new arrivals. Adopting one of these travelers aids in the situation. Now might be a good time to find a new furever friend. ♥

 

Presently none of the large pet store chains has any organized effort, but it will come and once it has will be added here.

UPDATE:

PetSmart now has a link to donate to their charities with funds going to Harvey relief. Click on the dropdown for Emergency Relief Fund.

PetCo has also now posted a link for donations through their PetCo Foundation. They have a long list of beneficiaries that they will add to as needed. All donations made in store and online between now and September 10 will directly support animal welfare organizations in South Texas and Louisiana.

It is important to note that these organizations are going to need support for a long time while they care for these animals. So if you can’t make a donation right now ( back to school shopping and other end of summer essentials) the following weeks will still have need. But remember, even $1 is a good donation!!

 

This list will be updated continually as more information becomes available.