Help Needed!

[K & L]

Help Needed for the Animal Victims of the Arizona Rodeo Fire!!

Northeastern Arizona is currently experiencing a terrible brush fire that has burned more than 45,000 acres. The fire is encroaching on homes and is affecting companion animals, agricultural animals, and wildlife. The Arizona SPCA, the Arizona Humane Society, the Silver Creek Humane Society, the St. Johns’ police department and other organizations are working together to evacuate animals and reunite them with their families.

Local Foster homes desperately needed: Our local animal welfare groups are all helping to care for evacuated cats and dogs until they can be reunited with their families. Our shelters are full and we need foster homes! We do not know how long the animals will have to stay in your home. If you may be able to help, please contact Erin Lopez, Alliance for Companion Animals at 602-275-0131.

Carriers, food, and litter for dogs, cats, rabbits, and other animals: If you have carriers that can be used to help with evacuations in this emergency, please put your name and contact information on them and deliver them to the following locations:

From 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, please take items to the Arizona SPCA office 5517 North Black Canyon Highway (between Glendale and Bethany Home Road on the East side of the Black Canyon Highway)
Before 9:00 am and after 3:00 pm deliver food and carriers to: In the North Phoenix area: 801 East Winter, Phoenix, Arizona. Please just leave items on the driveway. In the South Phoenix Area: 2028 East South Mountain Avenue (located between Dobbins and Baseline Road), Phoenix, Arizona

Veterinarians and Vet Technicians: There will be a growing need for triage as animals come in, so if you are a vet or a vet tech. and would like to help, please call Barbara O'Lear, Silver Creek Humane Society at 928-536—5460.

Horse trailers: If you have a horse trailer that can be used to help evacuate horses and other large animals, please go to the Navajo Fairgrounds in Holbrook, Arizona or to the Taylor Rodeo Grounds in Taylor, Arizona or contact Barbara O’Lear, President of the Silver Creek Humane Society at telephone: 928-536—5460.

Donations for the purchase of hay and food: Please send donations directly to: The Silver Creek Humane Society, PO Box 2112, Snowflake, AZ 85937

Donations for rescued companion animals: please mark donations: “For Rodeo Fire Victims” and send to: The Arizona SPCA, P.O. Box 33334, Phoenix, AZ 85027

For local help in fostering contact Erin Lopez at 602-275-0131

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE!

[Aspen and Misty]

Taht is so sad. I hope people will help them! I would but I am to far away :( . My thougths are with all those people and animals.

[~*Puppy Love*~]

:( I'm so far away . But my hopes & prayers are with you all!

[CountryWolf07]

I wish I could help too.. but I'm also too far away! I'm keeping all of em' in my thoughts. :( - Rachel

[K & L]

http://www.arizonarepublic.com/news/articles/0623fire-rimfire23.html

[K & L]

UPDATE on animal situation from volunteers:

Delivered lots of dog food, catfood, kitty litter, carriers and cages to Holbrook last night. We arrived about 11:30 p.m. After unloading and setting up some cages it was back to Flagstaff where we stopped for a couple hours rest then back home.

There were about 50 dogs, 25 cats, 2 rabbits, and 4 birds at the high school. (We didn't go to the fairgrounds where larger animals were being held.) Litter was their most critical need at that point and thanks to AAWL we had plenty to deliver.

They were expecting more dogs and cats today so they were extremely grateful to receive our help. I would say that the cats were actually the ones that were in the most critical need of more space, bigger cages, etc. Our supplies should be a huge help with that.

Right now the Holbrook situation is pretty good. They are still in need of some big dog pens because they have several large dogs that are in too small cages or carriers but I reported back to Betty Welton and to Erin Lopez and together with Friends for Life they are working to get additional supplies lined up.

The plan is to try to keep the cats and dogs that have families, up in Holbrook and not have to bring them back to the valley. The H.S. has the animals that were displaced from the shelters already here in Phoenix. I know AAWL is planning to take many of them. However, if the situation goes on for a long time, it is possible they may have to come up with another plan, perhaps including fostering people's pets.

It also seems to me that they may well need people willing to go up to help care for the animals in a week or even two, particularly during the weekday, should this go on for as long as it looks like it will.

The Show Low shelter had been evacuated but as of last night they had reopened it as a triage to care for injured and burned animals. However, with the threat of a second evacuation still hanging over them - we may yet see cats and dogs coming our way.

The fact that we had a great response and have many people standing by to help if needed is wonderful. We hope to learn from this and begin to develop a rapid response team that can help our companion animals in a crisis as quickly as we help people. In that respect this has been a positive experience.

We will keep you posted. Everyone who has responded that they could foster is still very much on our list. This is far from over.

[sammi]

Thank you for the great service you are doing to help the animal's. I passed the word to people that I know in Arizona.