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| Since the existing animal shelter had been destroyed in the Hurricane, a makeshift shelter was comprised of 2 large tents on a recreational field. |
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| This tent housed the cats and exotic pets. In addition to up to 100 cats, this tent sheltered turtles, chickens, snakes, fish and a ferret |
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| A dog run was built to allow some shelter occupants to stretch thier legs. Volunteers spent many hours walking and excersising them. |
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| Daily briefings were necessary to keep everyone updated on the day's objectives. |
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| Sue, a very dedicated volunteer, who traveled down from Vermont, was put in charge of cats who were too nervous to be handled. She spent hours with each animal trying to determine if they could be socialized. We nick-named her the Cat Whisperer. |
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| Craig, a retired police officer from Virginia, and Dr. Davis examine a dog they had just rescued from a parish neighborhood. This male pit bull was very gentle, and seemed to respond very well to gentle handling. |
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| Shirley, a technician from Kansas, and Dr. Davis examine a ferret who was rescued from a destroyed home. This ferret was in very critical condition, and Shirley took Lionel to her tent at night and gave him intravenous fluids every few hours so he wouldn't miss a treatment. |
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| Amy, a volunteer from the Quebec Province in Canada, helps care for Lionel. We were able to contact the owner, who had been relocated to Texas. Dr. Davis phoned Loinel's owner daily to keep her updated. Loinel responded very well to treatment and was later transported to a local veterinary hospital wher he could be cared for until his owner could make it back to New Orleans. |
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| Another exotic patient. This red tailed boa was severely dehydrated and required subcutaneous injections of fluids. |
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| Dogs and cats weren't the only ones getting TLC, as Aimee, a Washington DC volunteer, demonstrates. |
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| Over 10 days, more than 500 animals came through the shelter. Ones that were healthy enough for travel were transported to shelters all over the country. This particular group of animals was headed for Pinellas, Florida. Before leaving, animals were all examined, vaccinated, microchipped and photographed. Photos were put up on websites to aid owners in finding their pets even if they had been sent to a distant shelter. |
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| One of the bright spots of each day was when a local resident would identify and re-claim their pet. Most of these owners had lost everything else they owned, so reuniting them with their pets was a very emotional experience. Volunteers encouraged these owners to take what ever supplies they needed, food, bottled water, dishes, beds, carriers, etc... |
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| Reuninions were not the norm, less than 10% of the animals were reunited with their owners while at the shelter. Hopefully these owners will identify their pets by pictures kept at the shelter or on the shelter's website. The ASPCA has stated that should an owner identify a pet that has been relocated, they will pay the expenses to have the owner and pet reunited. |
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| The people Dr. Davis met in New Orleans were a special group. Here we see Jean, a technican from Maine, Dr. Elizabeth from Florida and Dr. Connie from Virginia. |
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| Craig, a retired Virginia police officer, was out in the field most of the day (and some nights, too) rescuing animals. Dr. Sabra was working at another shelter nearby. There was a lot of cooperation and sharing of supplies between the shelters, despite their affiliations. |
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