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As millions of people spent last week preparing themselves and their loved ones for Hurricane Florence, thousands of good souls also planned ahead for our four-legged friends. Animal shelters across North and South Carolina have been working nonstop to get ahead of the storm by arranging evacuations and preparing disaster relief.
While Florence was making its way toward the Carolinas, shelters hosted adoption and fostering drives to get as many pets as possible to safety before the storm hits. The overwhelming response to these drives surprised everyone and left shelter workers speechless and full of gratitude.
Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, an animal rescue organization based in Nashville, Tennessee, came down to the Pawleys Island, South Carolina shelter to bring 21 dogs and 15 cats living in the shelter to safety.
The Animal Society in Charleston, South Carolina, was also forced to close down on Friday before Florence came ashore, but gave its social media followers a reason to smile when it shared heart-warming photos from pre-storm adoptions.
"In this stressful time of waiting to see what Hurricane Florence has in store for our community, I thought it might be sweet to post one of the last adoptions we did before we closed on Wednesday," the shelter wrote on Facebook early Friday. "Look at this happy face! She told me this baby will be sleeping in my bed during the storm!"
The shelter was able to bring 62 dogs "out of harm's way" and planned to evacuate another 25 kittens and four bunnies before the week’s end, according to its website.
Other shelters in the storm path also posted appeals to the public asking people to take in pets in need ahead of the hurricane.
Saving Grace, an animal shelter in Wake Forest, North Carolina, wrote on Facebook that people in its community came together to help house more than 120 dogs who were still "waiting for their forever homes."
"We are grateful for those individuals in our community who stepped up yesterday to open their homes to 124 Saving Grace dogs," the shelter wrote. "All these dogs came to us in need, some from evacuated shelters this week and some have been with us prior to 'Florence' waiting for their forever homes.
"We may have a small shelter but our volunteers and the difference they make in the lives of many is huge," it added.
How You Can Help
In addition to kindhearted volunteers, shelters are also in need of donations. Joe Elmore, CEO of the Charleston Animal Society told Money magazine that evacuating 265 animals ahead of Hurricane Irma in 2016 cost $60,000, $11,000 of which was for veterinary care alone.
If you wish to donate to local organizations directly, you can contact the Charleston Animal Society, Coastal Animal Rescue, Greenville Humane Society, The Humane Society of Charlotte, Pender County Animal Shelter, or Brother Wolf Animal Rescue.
Dry food for dogs and cats and wet food for cats are always good options if you're looking to provide resources almost all animal organizations will also greatly appreciate volunteers to help out with taking care of the animals.
Contact a local shelter or visit ASPCA's volunteer website to see how you can get involved.
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