Animal lovers....this hurricane photo breaks my heart

[Bluebear]

Sherry Kicklighter holds her dog Skittles after being blocked from staying at a hurricane shelter in Port Charlotte. Her home and car were destroyed in the Maple Leaf Golf and Country Club in Port Charlotte following hurricane Charley. Kicklighter and her dog were offered alternate housing by a person who noticed her situation. (GARTH FRANCIS/news-press.com)



---
I'm sure I'd be one of those saps riding it out in my car with my hounds too.

[flamingyouth]

1. Oh, how sad!

And the dog is named SKITTLES, no less! :D

At least a kind person took them in.

[SoCalDem]

2. THIS is why people DIE.. Shelters exclude animals

and people decide to "ride it out" with their pets..

I must say that here in CA, during the fires, shelters DO accept animals..They go out of their way to rescue animals.

That's the way LIBERAL people treat people and their pets..

[Bluebear]

4. Indeed!!

And especially if you bring their crate what's the big deal?

[SoCalDem]

8. I remember seeing pictures from the shelters here

Like Noah's ark.. there were pet goats, horses in stalls, dogs, cats, birds..you name it.. They were all "contained", but our rescuers know that people NEED their pets at a time like that..

[ronnykmarshall]

21. That sig line

That is a classic!

[Tom Kitten]

9. Amen to that brother...

I agree 1000%...if you can save animals you do! This "compassionate conservativism" has just proven itself to be pure bullshit!
I'll be soon waiting for the right wing pundits and talk show hosts to soon mock victims for expecting "special rights" for pets and other animals at the expense of human suffering! Like they really give a hang's ass about that, too!

[lapfog_1]

3. Thats a big WTF?

They excluded her from a shelter because she had a pet with her?
What kind of crap is that. My mother would NEVER EVER leave
her dog home alone while she went to a storm shelter, even if
she thought it might kill her.

Is that SOP for all storm shelters or just this place in Port Charlotte?

[Bluebear]

5. Most shelters warn "no pets allowed"

One of the first things we did when we moved to our house was research motels that take pets if we had to evacuate.

[Tom Kitten]

6. More compassionate conservatism from the Bush family!

In this case brother Jeb, the governator...
WTF is with these people denying shelter to folks who have lost everything but managed to keep their pets?
Utterly un-understandable.

[SoCalDem]

7. All life is precious.. very sweet pic here

Sat Aug 14, 9:56 PM ET


Kelly Cummings, 24, cuddles a day-old chick August 14, 2004 which she rescued August 13 before Hurricane Charley came and ripped the roof off the house she was living in outside of Wauchula, Florida. Hurricane Charley moved across the Florida peninsula, went out to sea in the Atlantic Ocean, and made landfall again today in South Carolina. NO SALES NO MAGS TAMPA OUT REUTERS/Jamie Francis/St. Petersburg Times

[Ithuilwen]

25. How adorable and sad at the same time!

:(

[sandnsea]

10. No pet shelters?

When we have wildfires go through out here, the animal shelters arrange for the pets to be taken care of. Don't they do that in Florida??

[Bluebear]

12. Sad but true, here is an in-depth news article......

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/3572069.htm?1c

Show up at the storm shelter with your beloved Tibetan spaniel in tow, and disaster relief workers will show your dog the door.

In one of the nation's most hurricane-prone peninsulas -- populated by South Floridians who ponder summer storm tracks the way New Yorkers contemplate baseball statistics -- four-legged, feathered, and scaled companions are not welcome in any sanctuaries of last resort.

''Animals are best kept away from American Red Cross hurricane evacuation shelters,'' said Annette Barket, spokeswoman for the Miami-Dade County branch of the nonprofit Red Cross, which runs 47 shelters in Miami-Dade, and 31 others in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

As emergency management officials struggle mightily to boost hurricane evacuation numbers, some contend the lack of shelters permitting pets has become a safety issue that could one day cost the lives of people who are unwilling to abandon their animals.....

Ten years after Hurricane Andrew scattered cats and dogs across South Dade, South Florida still doesn't have a pet shelter for hurricanes.

[Spinzonner]

11. Yes, it seems cruel

but those shelter managers need to be concerned about hygiene and safety in the presence of lots of people crowded together under great stress, including little children and the elderly who might be more susceptible to disease and fright.

And the animals could be stressed by so many people crowded together - especially strangers - and other animals. It's a highly combustible mixture and has both danger and liability concerns.

What needs to be done is separate parallel system for handing the animals and keeping track of them. Here in many parts of California Animal Control and/or Humane Society will fill those roles. But I dont think its unreasonable to require the people and animals to be kept separate and the animals out of the human shelter. Be fair to the people that have to handle these things.

[Bluebear]

13. I understand but read the article above...

Many people WILL NOT leave their pets. All they need do is specify for emergency situations you need to bring a carrier/crate for the pet. This woman was turned away in the middle of a category 4 hurricane and you can see the anguish on her face. Some compromise must be possible!

[alarimer]

26. I won't leave mine.

Here in Texas shelters are the same way. They won't even open shelters in Corpus Christi. the only shelters open during a strom are in San Antonio or other cities well away from the coast. I always ride out storms. We haven't really been threatened lately. Last year Claudette landed 60 miles north. Also the evacuation route for my area sens me south when all my relatives live north so I plan on ignoring the evacuation route and going to Austin to my relatives' house (with my cat) if it becomes necessary to leave. But I doubt I will leave.

[Tom Kitten]

14. so nobody in Florida prepares for such things?

are not hurricanes in Florida something that tends to happen occasionally according to history and should they not already have such a system in place?

[SoCalDem]

15. yes..they should, but look at who runs the place.. It costs $$$$

California will send helicopters to rescue a horse that has fallen into a canyon...they accept and welcome animals in the fire shelters..(see above)...it's all about whether you CARE or not..

They don;t...


I heard a town official standing next to a woman whoi had lost everything...and TWICE I heard these words come out of his mouth...

paraphrasing..


"..people need to take personal responbsibility...they should have at least THREE days' worth of emergency supplies... they need to be responsible for taking care of themselves for up to a week."..

I thought ..How special...

Did he expect that elderly woman to strap those supplies to her back??? She probably DID have enough supplies to care for herself, but it all was destroyed..

:grr:

[Tom Kitten]

17. You said it in a nutshell...

they blame the victims for oversights when in fact they themselves are guilty of oversights...Probably just covering up mass incompetence, eh? They'd probably prefer cleaning their guns in order to uphold "order" than actually help people in desperate need....

[Bluebear]

20. Amen to that. nt

[progressivebydesign]

16. How hard would it have been for Florida to secure crates???

I mean.. they've had ten years since the most devastating storm.. Don't you think someone would have had the thought to make arrangments by now? A plan could be in place, in a matter of months, to secure a large number of crates and pens. Pet owners could be in one part of the shelter, those who do not want to be near the pets could be in another. Or another building on site (perhaps a garage) could be for the pet crates.

I was instrumental in having Armories open during rare bitter cold snaps in my coast california town decades ago.. when there were no homeless shelters beyond the inner cities. It didn't take much work to get it coordinated... how did this issue become overlooked by the pet organizations?

I hope that those who love their pets, those who realize howmany people will die.. staying with their pets.. and will do something about this before the next storm.

Okay.. my mini aussie just jumped up next to me and is liking my arm as I type.. she obviously approves of this message.

[JanMichael]

19. The elderly are more likely to get sick from the children

in the shelters than the animals. Have you ever caught a cold from a friend's cat snotting on you?

An animal in a crate should not pose that much danger to someone unless they are dumb enough to stick their fingers through the door and get bitten by a frightened animal.

[Maddy McCall]

24. EXACTLY!

[Behind the Aegis]

18. Blessed are the animals

Many states will not allow animals into shelters during emergencies because of "allergies" and people's fears of animals. It is very sad. Animals can be our companions. They are brought to homes of the mentally ill and elderly and seem to increase human happiness, but when the "chips are down," those without pets don't seem to understand their importance.

I was in NC when we got hit by Bertha (among other storms). Since I worked at a university, our residence halls (dorms) were designated shelters. We were told "NO ANIMALS!" I did not have a pet at the time, but anyone that came with a pet was allowed in my building as long as the pet was under control. It soon got out that I would allow pets and they came in droves. The administration was pissed with me, so I said' "fire me! but I am not letting pets die because you're an asshole!"

I have several pets now. The only pets I can't get to a shelter (or the bathroom) in time are my fish. (I live in Tornado Alley.) The others I can grab the cage and run them to the bathroom, except the cat. So, I am training the cat to run to the far bathroom when I yell "Tornado." He still looks at me funny, but is learning that when the sirens blare to come find me and follow me.

They maybe "just animals" to some, but they are like family to me.

Brightest Blessings!

[VoteDemocratic2004]

22. Why don't they have a room for pets?

Why do they have to be so heartless toward pet owners. I can't understand why they tell people to leave their pets at home and they know that the home is going to be destroyed.

I would wear my pets like a mink stole like Lilly did on the Munsters before I would leave them at home during a hurricane.

[Bluebear]

27. lol at Lilly Munster

[Maddy McCall]

23. :grrrrr: I would be one of those, too.

Very sad. I am glad that some good-hearted animal lovers saw her situation and helped her out, but how many others decided to stay instead of go because of their pets. :cry: