Special animal lovers edition of the Mississippi trip...

Okay, for those of you who are animal fanatics (like me!) I wanted to give you a constructive way to help animals effected by the storm that is free, and does not require you to adopt yourself unless you want to.

Waveland MS had an animal shelter that was destroyed in the storm. Of course, this is one case in the multitude of shelters that were wiped away, but I was in that area this week and decided I would drive over last night before I drove back to Hattiesburg to see how I could help.
They do not need any more food supplies. But before the storm hit, they released the animals in the shelter hoping that they would somehow follow instincts and find a way to survive. In the end this was probably the most humane thing they could have done~ the alternative would have been certain death in the tsunami.

While all that remains of the shelter is a pile of rubble, the Mobile,AL ASPCA was there with cages and trucks trying to find pets that somehow survived. They had one cat in a crate. Poor guy was so stressed...I asked if I could take him home, but was told that they have to remain in MS for 30 days, then can be released to other states. I took a picture of him to show my husband. I'm going to put on my best "Please,Please,Please I want this cat" face when I get home, but Nick may not give in...we have 2 cats already who are 14, so I'm sure he would not want to upset the applecart. But if this cat is available, I'm going to try and find him a home.
They said there will be an overwhelming # of animals to manage, and that the best way to help right now is this:
Contact your local shelter ( preferably a non-destructive one) and tell them that you want to know if they will open up to animals from Mississippi. If they are open to the idea, please give them this number
1-888-722-3106
That is for the Mississippi State Vet office which approves all releases.
Then check the internet for animals that are up for adoption if you are willing to take on in yourself.

The email address is spca@mobilespca.org if you have questions.

We all have our favorite causes. For those who wish to make animals the priority, this is a very good constructive way to help, and it's free.

Meow,
Audrey

Update as of 10/21/05...
Excellent news today!

Remember I mentioned that I was going to ask my husband if I could adopt the cat that I saw being rescued in Waveland? For those of you who remember this part of my mississippi trip journal, I was going to give him my best "please, please, please I want this cat" face.

Sadly, that did not work. Nick gave me a flat out NO. not even an inch of wiggle room. Drat.

But I did call the shelter last week and forwarded them a photo of the cat because I had a friend who was interested in adopting. They called me back to say that the cat had already been adopted! How wonderful. It made my day.

For those of you who may be considering adding a pet into your family, the animals from the Waveland shelter and other rescued pets are now available for adoption. The 30 day waiting period for reuniting with original owners has passed. You can either look at www.petfinder.com or www.mobilespca.org for animals in need of a good home. They have had some success in reuniting owners with pets, but not enough. There's lots of love out there from an animal waiting for you to reach out and save it. What a good deed you would be doing for one of God's creatures.

Love in Our Bond,
Audrey Jankucic
Beta Psi 1979