Volusia shelter receives dogs escaping storm,
Volusia facility ‘thrilled’ to receive 35 pooches
A Volusia County animal shelter is opening its doors to 35 dogs Sunday evening, some of which are escaping the destruction caused by Hurricane Harvey.
The dogs are traveling from New Orleans by cargo van to the Southeast East Volusia County Humane Society, where they will be given veterinary attention, bedding, food and water, the facility’s executive director Karen Morgan said.
Most of the dogs are from Louisiana, Morgan said, but a handful are from Texas, where Hurricane Harvey battered coastal cities this weekend with winds topping 130 mph.
“As soon as we heard we had a state of emergency, we wanted to reach out and show that we can help,” Morgan said.
With those dogs on the way to Central Florida, the New Orleans shelter where they came from now has space to take in dogs displaced from the Category 4 hurricane that made landfall late Friday northeast of Corpus Christi.
The hurricane was the strongest to make landfall in the United States in more than 10 years, the National Weather Service said.
In Houston, Harvey has dumped more than two feet of rain and caused catastrophic flooding.
One of the dogs that lived in Texas was found living outdoors on a heavy chain, seemingly abandoned, Morgan said.
“It looks like the dog was left behind in the stress of what was happening,” Morgan said. “Fortunately, they found her and were able to rescue her.”
With the influx of dogs, the shelter is also receiving help from two other Volusia rescues — Pawsibilites Rescue Group in Port Orange and Sophie’s Circle Dog Rescue in New Smyrna Beach.
Morgan said the groups have received several donations of bedding and food Sunday, and at least 15 people have volunteered to foster the dogs.
“We’re so thrilled to be a part of rescuing them,” Morgan said.