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San Leon shelter desperate to place 80 animals
By HARVEY RICE
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
GALVESTON -- As the shelter here smoothly evacuated 107 cats and dogs out of the path of hurricane Rita this morning, a shelter in San Leon was frantically trying to find refuge for about 80 animals.
The Bay Area Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals shelter was preparing animals to ride out the storm after failing to find foster homes for 40 dogs, 20 cats, five rabbits, two guinea pigs, six gerbils and six parrots, Executive Director Travis Demarest said.
"I don't know what options I have," Demarest said.
Shelter Board member Kat Joel-Reich said she had asked for help from the Houston SPCA, but was told they were evacuating their animals to other cities.
"We're doing everything in our power to keep the animals safe," Joel-Reich said.
Demarest, three staff members and about seven volunteers have desperately sought foster homes in hurricane-safe areas.
They found homes for about 20 and hoped to place another 20 before they evacuate at 5 p.m., he said.
"We are taking them and preparing the ones that are here to ride the storm out," he said.
Demarest was driving four dogs to Sulphur, La., to handoff to a volunteer who will drive a leg of a journey to a shelter in Connecticut.
He said the cages of animals they are forced to leave in the shelter are being placed on tables and other high spots in the building in hope of keeping them above high water.
The shelter is made of cinder blocks and concrete on high ground, giving it a better chance than other buildings in the area of surviving the storm, he said.
A volunteer who has decided to ride out the storm will be watching the animals, he said.
Demarest said the volunteer is risking her life. "She sure is, but she's not leaving by her own choice," he said.
Those willing to shelter an animal should phone the shelter at 281-339-2086 before 5 p.m., Demarest said.
In Galveston, among the first evacuees early this morning were dogs and cats from the Animal Shelter and Adoption Center.
The shelter's five-member staff and three volunteers began crating 79 cats and 28 dogs into pet carriers at 6 a.m., said shelter Executive Director Caroline Dorsett.
"It went well, just like clockwork," Dorsett said.
The animals were crated by 6:45 a.m. and loaded onto a horse trailer donated by Habitat for Horses, a shelter for horses, two SUVs, a van and a pickup truck for a ride to the Houston Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
There they will join animals evacuated from areas hit by hurricane Katrina who are being moved to shelters throughout Texas, Dorsett said.
With the exception of four dogs in quarantine for biting and a stray white Bulldog with tags whose owner could not be found in time, all the animals are up for adoption, she said.
Dorsett said the staff will stay with family members until they are called back to work. Dorsett is heading to Crocket where she has relatives, but expects to be back at the shelter as soon as the storm passes.
The shelter is built of sturdy concrete and brick in one of the higher areas of the island, so she believes it will have a good chance of surviving. The shelter's three computers, fax, printer and other essential equipment were bagged and placed in a central room.
"I think we're going to be OK," Dorsett said.
She has a pass that allows her back on the island before the general public and expects to get the shelter back in operation quickly with help from the Houston SPCA.
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Thank you for the Thread I am right outside of Ft Worth / Dallas & will note to see what shelters can hold more animals.. Most are still full from Katrina's..
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