Katrina’s victims have four legs, too

Printed in Galveston Daily News
September 1, 2005
By Daniel Huron

Human beings are not the only ones that have been uprooted from their homes by Hurricane Katrina.

Dogs, cats and other pets have also been forced from their homes. Those animals that are not allowed to stay in hotels or with friends or family have been taken to Galveston County’s animal shelters.

Caroline Dorsett, executive director of the Galveston Island Animal Shelter and Adoption Center, said her shelter is currently housing 11 animals and two more should be admitted soon.

The owners of three of the animals, she said, have surrendered their pets to the shelter because they have no home to go back to. Dorsett said she hopes to put the animals up for adoption.

The Galveston County Animal Shelter, 3412 Loop 197 N., in Texas City has four cats at its shelter, said dispatcher Gwen Norman. The felines’ owner has come to the shelter everyday to visit his pets, Norman said.

Dorsett said she is looking for people who would be willing to care for the animals at her shelter until their owners are ready to take them home. By placing them in a foster home, she said, the pets would be in a less stressful and healthier environment.

Dorsett said she is also seeking pet food donations.

+++

The Galveston Island Animal Shelter and Adoption Center, 6814 Broadway St., in is searching for potential foster homes for pets belonging to Hurricane Katrina evacuees.
For information, call (409) 740-1919.

The Galveston County Animal Shelter, 3412 Loop 197 N., in Texas City can be reached by calling (409) 949-3011.

For More Information Contact:
Kurt Koopmann
Public Information Officer
Galveston County Health District
(409) 938-2211
kkoopman@gchd.org