Welland SPCA assists in rescue of Houston dogs
The Welland and District Humane Society helped welcome more than 35 Houston dogs into Canada today.
The effort was part of an initiative lead by Toronto-based Redemption Dogs, whose non-profit Redemption Paws, helps animals in shelters after natural disasters.
The group sent eight volunteers to Texas to rescue dogs from shelters after hurricane Harvey. Hurricane Harvey, a category four hurricane, hit Texas on Aug. 25, leaving many without a home to return to.
“(Redemption Dogs) didn’t take owned animals,” explained John Greer, executive director of the Well and and District Humane Society. “They actually cleared out the sheltersdown there so that, the owned animals, they would have somewhere to house them.”
He said the Ontario SPCA invited Welland and the Georgian Triangle Humane Society to be a part of the effort after it partnered with Redemption Dogs. Together, they welcomed the Redemption Dogs volunteers and the dogs across the border.
Greer said the Welland humane society has done this before, so it went pretty smoothly because everyone involved ensured ahead of time that the dogs coming had the proper paperwork and shots required to enter the country.
A variety of small, big, pure bred and mixed breed dogs came into Canada and Greer said Welland’s location took on nine of the dogs, Georgian Triangle took five and the Ontario SPCA took on the rest of the dogs for the time being.
The dogs will stay with each of the organizations for a period of 10 days, during which time they will receive any medical attention they need, including spaying or neutering. After that time, the dogs will be turned over to Redemption Dogs, who will adopt them out.
Greer said the dogs are doing very well and are probably very glad to be out of the disaster area.
He said the humane society will be accepting donations for the dogs while they are in Welland’s care. He said monetary donations would be the best option since then staff can put it towards whatever they need, such as if some of the dogs need more extensive medical treatment.
“It’s really nice to see a lot of like-minded organizations come together and help animals in distress wherever they may be,” Greer said.
In a media release, Nicole Simone, founder of redemption dogs and director of Redemption Paws, had a similar sentiment, noting that the rescue and relocation of these dogs would not have been possible without the teamwork and cooperation of everyone involved.