Last week, Amy Heinz and 12 volunteers from AHeinz57 Pet Rescue and Transport traveled to Texas to assist with animal rescue efforts due to Hurricane Harvey.
Their goal wasn’t to rescue dogs from the floodwaters, but rather donate supplies and help clear animal shelters around Houston in order to free up more space for displaced animals.
“As an animal rescuer, you know what the other rescuers are going through,” Heinz, owner of the De Soto-based shelter, told the Register on Tuesday. “You know how much they need help. To see them euthanized to make a place for the dogs … it’s heartbreaking for them and heartbreaking for me.
“If we can ease that burden, it’s what we wanted to do.”
As Reported by The Des Moines Register.
This was the first natural disaster operation for Heinz and her team. Heinz said floodwaters were receding in the areas they visited, but only two of their 12 vans managed to make it through the streets.
They returned to Iowa with 96 dogs and five cats. About two dozen of those animals were transported to a few eastern Iowa shelters, Heinz said. One dog even gave birth to a litter of puppies on Labor Day.
Heinz added that several of the dogs were spayed and neutered Tuesday, while some needed heartworm testing.
“You’d never know these dogs went through anything,” she said. “Almost all of them are in foster homes. They are happy-go-lucky right now.”
The ARL has already rescued at least 20 dogs late Monday from a large-scale rescue operation in North Texas, the release said.
“This rescue was scheduled before Hurricane Harvey made landfall, but it removed some burden from the Texas shelter system so they could assist animals who urgently needed their help due to the hurricane,” the release said.
Learn more how you can help here.
It’s truly great seeing the country come together in times of disaster like this. It really makes you wonder and even worry about the mainstream media; who would have us believe that we are so far divided that there’s no hope. But as countless people have shown… we can and will come together when it counts most.
