Austin Pets Alive!, Best Friends Animal Society, Footbridge Foundation, and Wings of Rescue Join Forces to Help Pets Impacted by Texas Floods
This morning, 42 cats and 46 dogs boarded an emergency rescue flight out of San Marcos, TX to Best Friends Animal Society’s Pet Adoption Center in Salt Lake City, making space for incoming pets displaced by the flooding. The collaborative rescue efforts between Austin Pets Alive!, Best Friends Animal Society, Footbridge Foundation, and Wings of Rescue provided much needed relief and supplies to impacted animal shelters in Texas.
Pets aboard today’s lifesaving airlift were already in shelters looking for loving homes and will now continue their search in the Greater Salt Lake City area. This will help reduce overcrowded conditions in shelters directly impacted by the floods including Austin Pets Alive! and Footbridge Foundation.
“We are heartbroken by the devastation and losses people and pets are experiencing due to this week's tragic floods in Central Texas, and we will continue doing everything we can to support those affected by this disaster,” said Julie Castle, CEO of Best Friends Animal Society. “Best Friends Animal Society is thankful to have such committed partners like Austin Pets Alive, Footbridge Foundation, and Wings of Rescue who are always eager to collaborate to save pets lives. The cross-organizational efforts to bring these pets to safety demonstrates what we can do when communities work together.”
The dogs and cats, now in Salt Lake City, will be examined by Best Friends Animal Society’s veterinary team and will receive any necessary medical care, including vaccinations and spay/neuter surgeries. From there, they will become available for adoption in the coming days through Best Friends and their Salt Lake City partners.
"When disaster hits like this, government shelters are overwhelmed with lost pets coming through the door, often causing animals already past their stray hold to be euthanized just to make room," said Dr. Ellen Jefferson, President and CEO of Austin Pets Alive! "We're here to pull those animals to safety before that happens. Thanks to our partners at Best Friends Animal Society and Wings of Rescue, one hundred of those animals flew to Salt Lake City this morning, which gives our shelters the room they need to keep taking in pets and reuniting them with their families. We don't yet know the full extent of the devastation in these communities, but we know their shelters are being pushed past their limits, and we're not going to stop until we've done everything we can."
Individuals can directly help pets affected by the floods by fostering or adopting a pet from organizations directly helping dogs and cats impacted by the floods including Footbridge Foundation, Hill Country Humane Society, and Austin Pets Alive. These organizations are on the ground entering flooded areas to remove pets from impacted shelters. By helping them empty their kennels, more space is created for additional affected pets who need a safe place land.
For those who are unable to foster or adopt, donations to Best Friends Emergency Response Fund help provide immediate relief to pets and the people working tirelessly to save them. Disasters, like the Texas Floods, create an urgent need for food, medical care, transportation, and shelter. Best Friends is sending emergency supplies to animal shelters in need and is working alongside Footbridge Foundation, Hill Country Humane Society, and Austin Pets Alive! to support lifesaving efforts on the ground.
For more information, please visit bestfriends.org, austinpetsalive.org and wingsofrescue.org.
*No-kill is defined by a 90% or greater save rate for animals entering a shelter and is a meaningful and common-sense benchmark for measuring lifesaving progress. Typically, the number of pets who are suffering from irreparable medical or behavioral issues that compromise their quality of life and prevent them from being rehomed is not more than 10% of all dogs and cats entering shelters. For any community to be no-kill, all stakeholders in that community must work together to achieve and sustain that common goal while prioritizing community safety and good quality of life for pets as guiding no-kill principles. This means cooperation among animal shelters, animal rescue groups, government agencies, community members and other stakeholders, all committed to best practices and protocols.
About Wings of Rescue
Wings of Rescue is a donation-supported charity that air-transports abandoned, homeless and otherwise at-risk pets from overcrowded shelters, disaster areas and dangerous circumstances to the safety of rescue facilities and animal-welfare organizations where each pet is given proper care and a new home. Additionally, every year Wings of Rescue planes deliver thousands of pounds of humanitarian and veterinary aid to communities and pets in need, and the group serves as advocates for spay/neuter programs and other life-saving practices. Since its founding in 2012, Wings of Rescue pilots have safely and efficiently flown over 80,000 pets out of harm’s way and on to new lives. The nonprofit group operates hundreds of missions per year carrying thousands of dogs, cats, and other small companion animals to and from locations throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Advocating that all pets deserve a healthy and loving home, Wings of Rescue believes that responsible pet ownership enriches lives and builds stronger and more compassionate communities. For additional information or to donate, please visit www.wingsofrescue.org.
About Austin Pets Alive!
Austin Pets Alive! (APA!) is a nonprofit organization pioneering comprehensive, innovative programs designed to save the most at-risk homeless companion animals and educate others to do the same through its American Pets Alive! nationwide education and outreach division. A leader in No Kill sheltering in America’s largest No Kill city, APA! helps more than 10,000 dogs and cats annually in Central Texas and beyond get a chance at the life they deserve. To learn more about APA!, visit austinpetsalive.org.