Appended below is a press release from a couple of animal rescue groups that are still struggling to rescue animals on the streets of New Orleans. Do not believe state and local officials who claim that everything is under control. IT IS NOT UNDER CONTROL WHERE PETS ARE CONCERNED!!!
Please contact anyone of influence who can help get the word out, contact anyone who can get these rescuers the aid they need to help these poor animals. Tell the national animal rescue groups to stop wallowing in their millions of dollars and do SOMETHING! Suggestions:
- write newspaper editors
- email or call LA state officials (
http://www.louisiana.gov/wps/portal/- New Orleans officials (
http://www.nocitycouncil.com/content/)
- Congress. Below is a list of members of Congress that I posted here a couple of days ago.
- Contact the big animal rescue groups like the Humane Society of the US and ASPCA and tell them to do SOMETHING! What the hell are they doing with the millions of $ they have raised? Saving it for an emergency?????!!!
MOST IMPORTANT: If you can volunteer to help Jane Garrison's group in New Orleans, please see this website for logistical details:
http://www.AnimalRescueNewOrleans.com----------------------------------------
PRESS RELEASE:
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=56547State of Louisiana Blocks Animal Rescue While Thousands of Pets Face Starvation in New Orleans, Say Animal Rescue Groups
11/10/2005 1:19:00 PM
To: National Desk
Contact: Claire Davis, 435-899-1231 or KatrinaCatRescue@yahoo.com
BOGALUSA, La., Nov. 10 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Two animal rescue groups are issuing a call for the state of Louisiana to stop blocking attempts to save the thousands of sick, injured, and traumatized dogs and cats who still wander the streets of New Orleans.
The state has announced that the Hurricane Katrina rescue phase is over. Out-of-state veterinarians are banned from volunteering their services on behalf of the animals of greater New Orleans. Rescuers have been threatened with arrest if they attempt to give food and water to animals in Orleans Parish. Outside rescue groups are told they should turn all operations over to local authorities and leave the state.
Meanwhile, the pets who survived Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath are dying on the streets -- sometimes right next to food and water bowls that the handful of remaining rescuers couldn't fill in time.
AnimalRescueNewOrleans.com (
http://www.animalrescueneworleans.com) and Alley Cat Allies (
http://www.alleycat.org) are calling for the state to reverse its course and accept outside help in the form of veterinarians and more volunteers.
"We are literally seeing animals on the streets starving to death," says Jane Garrison, director of AnimalRescueNewOrleans.com, one of a handful of rescue organizations still in the city. "We need more volunteers to feed and water the thousands of traumatized animals still on the streets, we need to keep trapping animals so we can reunite them with their guardians, and we need a massive spay/neuter program."
Garrison coordinated the animal rescue program for six weeks as a volunteer for the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). Since HSUS pulled out October 1st, she has been running her own program. With a steadily dwindling force of volunteers, Garrison races against time trying to provide food and water at more than 2,000 sites in the New Orleans area, as well as fielding a constant stream of owner rescue requests.
"Many of these animals are people's companions who escaped their homes when doors and windows blew open. It would be completely unethical to allow them to die on the streets," she says.
The state claims that local authorities can handle the problem, but rescuers on the ground know this is not the case. One of the hardest hit areas, St. Bernard Parish, has no active animal control agency or functioning animal shelter. The Louisiana SPCA, in charge of animal control in Orleans Parish, does not have anywhere close to the staff, space, or resources required to address a problem of this magnitude.
As bad as the situation is now, in a few months it will be even worse. Despite the horrific conditions, the dogs and cats on the streets are still breeding, and rescuers are starting to see puppies and kittens born after Katrina. Statistics show that one unspayed female cat and her offspring can produce more than 59,000 cats in five years.
"If the state government doesn't allow us to feed, treat, and find homes for the thousands of animals struggling to survive now, it is in for rude awakening the beginning of next year," says Becky Robinson, national director of Alley Cat Allies (ACA). "The number of free-roaming cats and dogs will be devastating."
ACA, a national cat advocacy group now running a cat rescue operation from a base in Bogalusa, Louisiana, has plans for an immediate, large-scale spay/neuter program for the street cats of New Orleans. This program requires the services of about a dozen veterinarians experienced with high-volume surgery. Many out-of- state vets have offered their services, free of charge.
But the state of Louisiana is standing in the way. Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco, acting on advice from Assistant State Veterinarian Martha Littlefield, has refused to extend an executive order giving out-of-state veterinarians permission to practice in Louisiana. That order expired October 25. Any out-of- state vet practicing in the area now would do so at the risk of jail time and thousands of dollars in fines.
Despite the state's claims that local veterinarians can fulfill the need, ACA has been unable to find local vets who can provide consistent care for the cats housed at its temporary shelter, let alone enough to conduct the type of large-scale spay/neuter program that is so desperately needed.
"This nation's animal rescue community can help Louisiana meet this crisis if the state will simply acknowledge the problem still exists and allow us to work," Robinson says. "This is not only humane and ethical; it is in everyone's best interest."
For more information, please contact Claire Davis at 435-899- 1231 or KatrinaCatRescue@yahoo.com, or visit
http://www.alleycat.org and
http://www.AnimalRescueNewOrleans.com.http://www.usnewswire.com//© 2005 U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/
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http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=5299674&mesg_id=5299674shireen (662 posts) Tue Nov-08-05 03:23 PM
Original message
NEW ORLEANS ANIMAL CRISIS - PLS. WRITE CONGRESS!!!
Edited on Tue Nov-08-05 03:25 PM by shireen
Note: Jane Garrison is one of the very few brave souls who has spent months in New Orleans trying to rescue abandoned pets. THIS CRISIS IS NOT OVER! Please ask Congress for help! The scope of this disaster is too large for a few volunteers to handle, and major animal welfare groups are not being helpful (but they're very good at fundraising!)
-----------------------------------
How to help Jane Garrison.
Many of us have given more than we can afford to donate to animals. Many of us cannot travel to NO to help Jane. What is left to do? We can contact our elected officials. This crisis is too overwhelming -- we need to put some serious pressure on government to help people like Jane.
The sponsor of the amendment to HR 3858 (Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2005), introduced on September 22 '05, is Tom Lantos. Primary co-sponsors are Shays, Oberstar, Young, and Frank. Since it was introduced, the list of co-sponsors has grown to 62 House members. Please start by writing/faxing/calling the sponsor and primary co-sponsors, then try to contact as many of the 62 co-sponsors, especially if they're your representatives.
Also, please write to Sen. John Ensign. His email webform is
http://ensign.senate.gov/forms/email_form.cfm PLEASE CROSS-POST this message as widely as possible to other groups. Our elected officials will respond if they start getting flooded with emails and phone calls from concerned citizens.
There are three things appended below.
1) a sample letter (please personalize your message so it does not look like a form letter)
2) a list of the sponsor and primary co-sponsors with contact information
3) a list of the 62 co-sponsors (you will need to look up their contact info on the www.house.gov )
_______________
SAMPLE LETTER:
Dear .....,
as a co-sponsor of the Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2005, you may be interested to learn about the devastating consequences of leaving animals behind in a disaster area.
The disaster that struck New Orleans has exposed a lot of ugly facts about our society. One of those ugly facts is the treatment of our pets. The federal, state, and local governments have done little to help animals in the New Orleans area. The major animal rescue organizations are largely ignoring the current crisis. The work to save animal survivors in this largely deserted and devastated city is on the shoulders of a few people, all volunteers, who are struggling to fight a losing battle.
Appended below is a truly heart-breaking plea from one of the lead animal rescuers in New Orleans. Please read it -- it will give you a horrific glimpse into what is really happening to the remaining abandoned pets in New Orleans. Please help these animal rescuers get the government resources they need to save the innocent victims that our society has forgotten.
Thank you,
your name
& full contact information
From: Jane Garrison
Date: Mon, 7 Nov 2005 20:46:27 -0500
To: Kinship Circle<info@xxxxxx.xxx >
Subject: New Orleans urgent update 11/7
11/7 Very depressing day...Today we found 3 dead cats at 3 separate houses. These were cats who had only died in the past few days. Two of the cats were found dead on their front porches next to empty food and water bowls. The other was found dead on the back porch of a house where again, no food/water was available.
Why did these animals die? Because we do not have enough people to feed them. This is not a normal city on a normal day where animals can search through trash for scraps. This is a city where the majority of the residents have not returned so no trash is being generated. This is a city where there are no puddles for them to drink out of because it has not rained in over a month. This is a city where there are no residents who will feed them because very few people are actually living in New Orleans.
This is a city in a crisis. These animals have nothing but us to help them. I hate to say it but the animal community is failing these animals. Today we only had 24 people to put out food and water stations in a city that has thousands of animals on the streets. It is a tragedy that these animals made it through the hurricane, made it through the flood, made it through another hurricane and are dying because they don't have enough food and water.
Please don't think that someone else will go and help...because they won't and they're not. Please get in your car, get on a plane and come to New Orleans to help put food and water out for these animals. We currently have over three thousand locations in our database where we know animals are hiding under porches and under houses. I am begging you to please help. We will provide you with the list of locations and all the dog and cat food you will need. Just come... All the instructions you need are on Animalrescueneworleans.com. PLEASE don't let anymore animals die...
Jane Garrison
_______________
SPONSOR AND PRIMARY CO-SPONSORS OF
Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2005
Rep. Tom Lantos (CA, 12th Congressional District)
Sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Co-chair, Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus
Website:
http://lantos.house.gov/hor/ca12/home.htm Email: (constituents only)
http://lantos.house.gov/HoR/CA12/Contact+Tom /
Phone: 202-225-3531 (Washington DC)
Staff Contact for this issue: Guido Zucconi x53531
NOTE: PLEASE CALL HIS OFFICE.
Rep. Christopher Shays (CT, 4th Congressional District)
Co-chair, Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus
Co-sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Website:
http://www.house.gov/shays /
Email:
http://www.house.gov/shays/contact/index.htm Phone: 202-225-5541 (Washington DC)
Fax: 202-225-9629
Staff Contact for this issue: Kristy Crooks x55541
Congressman Don Young (AK, Congressman At Large)
Co-sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Website:
http://donyoung.house.gov /
Email:
http://donyoung.house.gov/opinions.htm Phone: 202-225-5765 (Washington DC)
Fax: 202-225-0425
Congressman James Oberstar (MN, 8th Congressional District)
Co-sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Website:
http://www.oberstar.house.gov /
Email: Constituents only,
http://wwwc.house.gov/oberstar/zipauth.htm Phone: 202-225-6211 (Washington DC)
Fax: 202-225-0699
Congressman Barney Frank (MA, 4th Congressional District)
Co-sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Website:
http://www.house.gov/frank /
Email: Constituents only,
http://www.house.gov/writerep /
Phone: 202-225-5931 (Washington DC)
NOTE: PLEASE CALL HIS OFFICE.
Congressman Raul M. Grijalva (AZ - 7th Congressional District)
Co-sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Member, Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus
Website:
http://www.house.gov/grijalva /
Email:
http://www.house.gov/grijalva/contact.html Phone: 202-225-2435 (Washington DC)
Fax: 202-225-1541
Congressman Earl Blumenauer (OR-3rd Congressional District)
Co-sponsor, amendment to HR3858, Sept 22 '05
Member, Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus
Website:
http://blumenauer.house.gov /
Email:
http://blumenauer.house.gov/about/Contact.shtml Phone: 202-225-4811 (Washington DC)
Fax: 202-225-8941
_______________
HR 3858 amendment, Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2005
(links to legislation at Rep. Lantos' website,
http://lantos.house.gov/hor/ca12/home.htm ).
List of 62 CO-SPONSORS
Rep Abercrombie, Neil
Rep Andrews, Robert E.
Rep Berkley, Shelley
Rep Bishop, Timothy H.
Rep Blumenauer, Earl
Rep Capps, Lois
Rep Case, Ed
Rep Cleaver, Emanuel
Rep Davis, Jo Ann
Rep Davis, Susan A.
Rep DeLauro, Rosa L.
Rep Engel, Eliot L.
Rep Evans, Lane
Rep Farr, Sam
Rep Filner, Bob
Rep Frank, Barney
Rep Goode, Virgil H., Jr.
Rep Gordon, Bart
Rep Grijalva, Raul M.
Rep Hinchey, Maurice D.
Rep Holt, Rush D.
Rep Inslee, Jay
Rep Johnson, Eddie Bernice
Rep Kaptur, Marcy
Rep Kildee, Dale E.
Rep Kilpatrick, Carolyn C.
Rep King, Peter T.
Rep Kline, John
Rep Lee, Barbara
Rep Lewis, John
Rep Lowey, Nita M.
Rep Lynch, Stephen F.
Rep Matheson, Jim
Rep McCollum, Betty
Rep McIntyre, Mike
Rep McNulty, Michael R.
Rep Menendez, Robert
Rep Miller, George
Rep Moran, James P.
Rep Nadler, Jerrold
Rep Napolitano, Grace F.
Rep Oberstar, James L.
Rep Olver, John W.
Rep Pastor, Ed
Rep Payne, Donald M.
Rep Schakowsky, Janice D.
Rep Schwarz, John J.H. "Joe"
Rep Shays, Christopher
Rep Sherman, Brad
Rep Snyder, Vic
Rep Spratt, John M., Jr.
Rep Tanner, John S.
Rep Thompson, Mike
Rep Tierney, John F.
Rep Udall, Mark
Rep Van Hollen, Chris
Rep Watson, Diane E.
Rep Waxman, Henry A.
Rep Wexler, Robert
Rep Wolf, Frank R.
Rep Wu, David
Rep Young, Don
_______________