Kinship Circle Letter Campaigns & Animal Rights Activism

Neverending Storm for Katrina’s Lost Animals
Random acts of cruelty on the rise in New Orleans

January 8, 2006 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRESS CONTACTS:

Jane Garrison: 843-343-8887, 225-298-9501, JaneGarrison@comcast.net

Pia Salk: 323-899-4160, 225-298-9508, piapia@adelphia.net

Brenda Shoss: 314-863-9445, 225-298-9504, kinshipcircle@accessus.net

By Brenda Shoss, 1/8/06

It was a day like any other, except for the flash of hot, sharp pain. A rainbow-colored arrow ripped through the cat's body, shredding his gallbladder, spleen, lung, intestines, and nearly every organ except his heart. Bewildered, the cat staggered to his feet with an arrow protruding from either side of his body.

Since Hurricane Katrina stole his home, the black and white cat had burrowed invisibly under broken buildings near a St. Bernard Parish high school. He'd emerged at dusk, blending with the dark to scour for food. The cat was just another shadow among thousands of displaced pets and strays in the New Orleans area.

No one knows who shot the arrow or how many days the cat survived with a hole through his body. But on January 3, 2006, someone notified Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO), a volunteer rescue operation on the ground since October.

ARNO co-director Jane Garrison, former rescue operations coordinator for the Humane Society of the U.S. at the state shelter in Gonzales, La., instructed one of her humane trappers to carefully watch the frightened cat without chasing him away.

In the meantime, Garrison dispatched a volunteer to a veterinary clinic for acepromazine to safely sedate the cat. ARNO trappers set some tuna-wrapped ace before the cat, who collapsed but still managed to consume the "bait." He was rushed to Southeast Veterinary Specialists in Metairie.

He'd survived hurricanes and floods, yet a newly named "Max" now faced the greatest challenge of his nine feline lives: Surgery to remove his gall bladder and resection his intestines. Just before surgery, with a chest tube and IV line embedded under his fur, the gentle tuxedo cat used his paws to "make muffins" against the hands of hospital staff.

Max awoke from surgery within hours, but his condition remained critical for two more days. On January 6, Deanna Theis of Southern Animal Foundation (SAF) in New Orleans, described Max as "not completely out of the woods, but making progress."

Max is not alone. Random cruelty appears to be on the rise in hurricane-ravaged areas where people lost homes, jobs, and most of their memories. While animal abusers represent a minority of the returning population, their brutality is unsettling.

Within 24 hours of Max's discovery, 13 poisoned cats were uncovered in two separate locations. A veterinarian confirmed the cats were killed with antifreeze.

Cadi Schiffer, ARNO's Food/Water Program Coordinator at the group's base camp in Metairie, notes a disturbing trend in recent weeks. "I've had two reports of residents shooting at dogs with pellet guns. One of the kids was throwing stones at the dogs."

Rescuers found a yellow Lab mix nicknamed Canal Girl riddled with 100 pellets. ARNO volunteers also spotted a gaunt, chained dog with no access to food or water. "When the team went back to follow up, the dog was dead by the side of the road," says Jessica Higgins, ARNO's Dog Trapping Coordinator.

The vast majority of returning residents are shocked by this senseless violence. In fact, many work tirelessly to feed, rescue and foster the hurricane homeless. Some borrow cars to help sustain more than 2,000 ARNO food/water stations across 650 sq. miles in Orleans Parish, St. Bernard Parish and beyond.

Under Louisiana state law, it is a misdemeanor crime to unjustifiably overwork, injure, or withhold food/water, shelter and veterinary care. Deliberate torture or mutilation, "aggravated animal cruelty," is a felony.

Garrison and fellow ARNO directors Pia Salk and David Meyer intend to uphold the law. They ask volunteers to document animal cruelty observed in the field. They file police reports and urge officials to vigorously investigate animal abuse offenses. If a suspect is apprehended, they advocate prosecution to the fullest extent of the law.

Currently, ARNO circulates a flyer that reads: "Official Warning: It is against the law to harm, poison or kill animals. Rewards offered for information leading to arrests."

Sometimes, the laws of conscience prevail. In October, a returning NOLA resident watched her neighbor discard a Doberman alongside a garbage pile. Although the skin-and-bones dog couldn't lift her head, she was alive. The witness quickly called ARNO and SAF. Once on IV antibiotics, the dog ate right out of her caregivers' hands.

Weeks later she walked out of the clinic to join her new family. For this old girl, the hurricanes and hurt were finally over.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1.) If you see someone or know about someone who has harmed, shot, poisoned or otherwise abused an animal in the New Orleans area, call: 843-343-8887.

2.) Download animal abuse warning flyers from www.AnimalRescueNewOrleans.com to post in hurricane-effected areas.

3.) Volunteer for hurricane animal rescue. Follow instructions under "HOW TO VOLUNTEER FOR ARNO" at www.AnimalRescueNewOrleans.com.

PHOTOS:
1. Max, 1/3/06, at Southeast Veterinary Specialists in Metairie, Louisiana.
2. Doberman found discarded by trash pile, 10/05.
3. This Doberman also tested positive for Heartworm and developed pneumonia.
4. Half of the arrow protruding from Max was shaved off during surgery prep.
5. Dobie-in-trash, 10 days post-rescue with 5 pound weight gain.
6. Max, pre-surgery.
7. 1/4/06, Dorothy (Rottweiler) has made a FULL recovery after rescue from the trash.
8. As of January 9, 2006, Max was continuing to make progress.
9. Dobie-in-trash, learning to walk again.

To reprint this article in your publication, web site or list, please request author permission: info@kinshipcircle.org

Kinship Circle’s column runs bimonthly in The Healthy Planet. Ms. Shoss is also a contributing writer for The Animals Voice, Satya Magazine, VegNews, and other publications. If you would like to reprint this column, please request author permission at info@kinshipcircle.org

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