Posted on 09/04/2005 12:04:39 PM PDT by Fawn
AP Photo GAGB101
Associated Press Writer
ATLANTA (AP) - As Valerie Bennett was evacuated from a New Orleans hospital, rescuers told her there was no room in the boat for her dogs. She pleaded. ``I offered him my wedding ring and my mom's wedding ring,'' the 34-year-old nurse recalled Saturday. They wouldn't budge. She and her husband could bring only one item, and they already had a plastic tub containing the medicines her husband, a liver transplant recipient, needed to survive. Such emotional scenes were repeated perhaps thousands of times along the Gulf Coast last week as pet owners were forced to abandon their animals in the midst of evacuation.
In one example reported last week by The Associated Press, a police officer took a dog from one little boy waiting to get on a bus in New Orleans. ``Snowball! Snowball!'' the boy cried until he vomited. The policeman told a reporter he didn't know what would happen to the dog.
At the hospital, a doctor euthanized some animals at the request of their owners, who feared they would be abandoned and starve to death. He set up a small gas chamber out of a plastic-wrapped dog kennel.
``The bigger dogs were fighting it. Fighting the gas. It took them longer. When I saw that, I said 'I can't do it,''' said Bennett's husband, Lorne.
Valerie Bennett left her dogs with the anesthesiologist, who promised to care for about 30 staff members' pets on the roof of the hospital, Lindy Boggs Medical Center.
``He said he'd stay there as long as he possibly could,'' Valerie Bennett recalled, speaking from her husband's bedside at Atlanta's Emory University Hospital.
On Saturday afternoon, she said she saw a posting on a Web site called petfinder.com that said the anesthesiologist was still caring for the animals.
Louisiana State Treasurer John Kennedy, who was helping with relief efforts Saturday, said some evacuees refused to leave without their pets.
``One woman told me 'I've lost my house, my job, my car and I am not turning my dog loose to starve,''' Kennedy said.
Kennedy said he persuaded refugees to get on the bus by telling them he would have the animals taken to an exhibition center.
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals picked up two cats and 15 dogs, including one Kennedy found tied up beneath the overpass next to an unopened can of dog food with a sign that read ``Please take care of my dog, his name is Chucky.''
The fate of pets is a huge but underappreciated cause of anguish for storm survivors, said Richard Garfield, professor of international clinical nursing at New York's Columbia University.
``People in shelters are worried about 'Did Fluffy get out?''' he said. ``It's very distressing for people, wondering if their pets are isolated or starving.''
The Bennetts had four animals, including two beloved dogs.
They moved to Slidell, La., in July when Valerie took a job at an organ transplant institute connected to Lindy Boggs. Lorne, a former paramedic, is disabled since undergoing a liver transplant in 2001.
On Saturday, as Hurricane Katrina approached, both went to the hospital to help and took all four animals with them.
They fed their guinea pig and left it in its cage in a patient room. They couldn't refill its empty water bottle because the hospital's plumbing failed Sunday, they said. They poured food on the floor for the cat, but again no water.
``I just hope that they forgive me,'' Valerie Bennett cried.
Hurricane Katrina Emergency "Round Up" Fundraiser
During an emergency "Round Up" fundraiser now through September 11, 2005, each time you make a purchase at a PETCO store, we'll ask you to Round Up your purchase to the next highest dollar - and we will donate that difference to the PETCO Foundation.
All proceeds go to the PETCO Foundation to support animal welfare disaster relief needs within the Gulf Coast region. Or make an online donation to the PETCO Foundation now.
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I'm sorry that I can't get back to all of the people that have emailed me with regards to this order. You have been great in sending the call out. It is a true order. I just received another phone call from my husband, 1 am, the second one in a week. He's getting about 2 to 3 hours of sleep a night. If other families have loved ones working there, I want to pass this information on first, as I am sending this to several emails.
The Westbank of New Orleans, Algiers, my home, has become command central for the entire city. Between the nursing home housing the firefighters, they are making use of the surrounding buildings, Holy Cross College, another nursing home that replaced the one my husband is in and others. There is a full contingency of Firefighters now, the 2nd platoon out of 3 platoons came in today. A platoon works 24 on and 48 off. But not anymore. Out of our 1700 Police officers, there are only 500 officers left. Whether they evacuated or left when the rioting began is not known. The balcony that my husband had to stand on outdoors to make this call was the same one that a 2nd district police officer committed suicide by his own gun. He had lost his entire family. Another female Police officer shot and killed her first assailant. She is practically in a state of shock, there are counselors and ministries to help our men and women of New Orleans who wear the badge, police or fire. All operations by our local forces are ceased at night, and the National Guard takes the night shift. To those families of the National Guard, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting us now, the city is becoming more stable every hour. We should have sent our SOS sooner, but that's politics there.
The shoot to kill order is coming from our "illustrious" Mayor Ray Nagin, who couldn't implement a swift evacuation of everyone in the city. Or possibly our Governor Kathleen Blanco, who's only evacuation command to the citizens was "Please be friendly to others on the road, we can't have road rage at this time....." That contraflow out of the city is the only thing that has worked in our city. Not everyone was too poor to leave, though the ones that were, should have been bused out using every school bus or RTA bus available. The shoot to kill does apply to dogs and other animals too, beside armed humans. And I do not think of them as human anymore. They are another species entirely.
Some of the dogs, and cats, are becoming feral, they are starving, they are drinking heavily contaminated water, we have bodies in the water tied to stop signs, on the streets, and in attics. They are being pulled out dead and the count is going to rise significantly when the water recedes.
There are packs of dogs especially in Eastern New Orleans, that was hit hard by the flood. They are all over the city, both the Eastbank and the Westbank. I've received many emails that if it were their dog, they would want them humanely killed. And I have to agree, if my dog was out in those conditions, no matter how much it hurts me to say this, I would want him/her humanely euthanized. Quickly. But they are not being humanely killed!!!! There are people and children who enjoy shooting animals, shooting them multiple times, and personally, I hope there are officers out there that will stop them with a City of New Orleans bullet. It is serious when Firefighters and other city workers besides the Police have to carry a gun. Their main priority is to rescue people. And it's finally happening.
Whoever posted the contact for getting animals out of specific addresses, thank you. I made use of it for a dear friend, who was married to a Police Officer who was shot in the line of duty, 3 years ago, who was forced to leave 3 cats behind in her home. Now someone will get them out with the instructions I was told to have someone break into her house. There are people in there recovering animals. I know that several people have made it back to their homes, or what was left of them. I don't know how they are getting in, but they are. Probably the back door. New Orleans, as well as the entire state of LA, is a hotbed of dog fighting. But we aren't the only state that is. There are a lot of very vicious animals out there that need to be euthanized by shooting. It's a dangerous situation to those who are trying to help us.
And please, if anyone wants to tell me that New Orleans should never be rebuilt, just keep your email to yourself. If Los Angeles or San Francisco were struck by the big one today, do you think they would be rebuilt? If a tornado destroyed an entire city in Kansas, Oklahoma, anywhere, do you think it wouldn't be rebuilt? There are natural disasters worldwide. The United States is rebuilding Iraq, a country, not a town, the world is rebuilding several nations struck by tsunamis. New Orleans has been standing for over 500 years. Did you see any devastation in our French Quarter, the original site of New Orleans? It was practically immaculate. What did they do without levees back in the 1600's? We do contribute to this nation in many ways.
My husband is Captain Richard Szymurski of the New Orleans Fire Dept for almost 30 years. He is housed with all of the commanders of the Police and Fire Depts. I don't know the name of the person who called for this order, all I know is that my husband is a man of integrity, who gave up his sick leave to stay and weather a violent hurricane. And he is only one of many. He is not the only person to know of this order, but does it matter? Rescue needs to be done for the animals if possible, and I think it is possible. Unfortunately we aren't the ones living in conditions that our great grandparents had to live in. Emergency generators only do so much.
As always, Siberianly, Lynn Szymurski Richlynn Siberians New Orleans, LA lynn @richlynn.com www.richlynn.com PERMISSION TO CROSSPOST:LS
Actually not kidding, there.
You let yours go. I won't. It's about that simple.
Great idea. Most towns have a nearby PETCO.
I could never leave my kitty kats behind...
Well there you go - A good steward would have gotten his ass - and the rest of his animals as well - out of town when he heard the order "evacuate."
Most of these whiners chose not to do so.
Bump :)
I would not have people leave their pets. They've lost everything for heaven's sakes...their beloved pets are all they have left. My pet would sit on my lap no matter how big he was. I wouldn't leave without my pet. I coudl not look him in the eye and leave him behind not when he would give his life for me. No way, no how. If we had to die so be it...we would die together cause I could nto abandon him in his time of need either.
They brought their cats and dog with them. All are doing well. I am very, very, grateful.
If they had not been smart enough to get out while the getting was good I would have been forced to mount some kind of half-@ssed rescue mission.
Not good.
I really wish you hadn't posted about the other, though . . . :-(
That's a massive dose of false advertising. Lack of compassion is not a Christian trait.
Hey, there are animals I would prefer to spend my life with instead of some of the poor excuses that call themselves human.
I would NOT leave my animals. They are important and beloved to me and to my family. They are loyal, loving and would give their lives for us any day of the week. Do you think I would leave behind a loving pet? If so, you are not only mistaken you are also dreaming and...you don't know true pet lovers and families.
Good for you. You are a kind, loving person who would help someone else.
This organization devoted solely to rescuing pets during disasters:
http://www.noahswish.org
Recommended by one of the big donors to the pet relief effort.
Here is the Katrina update page:
http://www.noahswish.org/Hurricane%20Katrina.htm
It's not physco. It's LOVE. God bless you and all of those like you who are blessed to know the love and kindness of animals in our lives.
I will help everyone I can, with the caveat that my babies come first.
They'd do it for me.
Okay, the Dread Boston Salty would do it for me. The Ferocious Feline Bebop Trio would likely eat me. (They've tried.)
What you said. I'm trying to talk the fiance into letting us foster some evacuee pets.
He says as long as the foster pets are big enough to eat Salty, he's in. ;)
Where is PETA? why don't they dispense boats and gather up the animals?
Thanks to all you compassionate people out there who think those animals are worth saving. I needed to hear that today....
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