ARLINGTON, Va. (7News) — An animal rescue in the DMV took in more than 90 dogs and cats that were transported from two North Carolina shelters impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Homeward Trails Animal Rescue picked up the animals in Richmond late Tuesday night from an Asheville-based group that transported the animals from Yancey and Mitchell Counties. The group brought 150 animals aboard two vans and two other groups, the Richmond SPCA and theLost Dog and Cat Rescue Foundation, took in the other animals, according to the Richmond SPCA.
“Emptying these two shelters gives their staff the capacity to address damage to their facilities and to help animals that have been displaced by the disaster, ensuring those pets are in the nearest shelter where their families can find and be reunited with them,” Tabitha Treloar, the director of communications for the Richmond SPCA, told 7News in an email.
The dozens of dogs and cats didn’t make it to Homeward Trails until around 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, then rescue workers and volunteers spent another hour or so getting them settled in.
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“It felt really, really good because we cleared out two entire shelters,” said Homeward Trails Founder and Executive Director Sue Bell. “That’s hard to do in normal times. It’s certainly hard to do in a natural disaster.”
“These dogs were living in shelters for days with absolutely no electricity, so it was pitch black 24/7,” she added. “No water. One or two staff maybe able to get to the shelter to care for them.”
With little sleep, the team spent Wednesday morning working with their foster network and shelter partners to provide temporary homes for these pets until they can get adopted. Now all but two cats and nine dogs and puppies are at Homeward Trails.
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“We always kind of think to the root of why we’re getting them,” Bell said. “It’s sad any animal in the shelter, natural disaster or otherwise, when you stop to think how they got there and why and what their fates could be without our intervention. But we don’t honestly have a lot of time to think about that.”
Now Bell is working to find temporary – and ultimately permanent – homes for the remaining animals in her care and in her foster network’s care. She wants to be able to have the space should more shelters in Helene-ravaged areas request help.
“It’s a constant balance trying to make sure that we’re helping animals from the hurricane-affected areas, but also not forgetting that our own Virginia shelters continue to see a massive influx of dogs and cats and puppies,” she said.
Bell said she is always looking for fosters and volunteers. For more details, click here.
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