American Humane Association Joins On-the-Ground Animal Response Team in Haiti

/PRNewswire/ -- The American Humane Association's program manager for Animal Emergency Services has deployed to Haiti to assist in an international effort to help animals affected by the earthquake. Tracy Reis, an expert responder who has participated in the rescue and sheltering of more than 12,000 animals, will arrive in Port-au-Prince Thursday as part of the Animal Relief Coalition for Haiti, which is jointly led by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).

Reis will join ARCH team members in the Dominican Republic and Haiti to begin implementing a feeding program for the community dogs and to assist with immediate veterinary aid to animals in Haiti. That effort will be conducted in cooperation with the Haitian government and, in particular, with the Ministry of Environment.

"We had not considered including animals in the plans we're working up now, but after meeting the ARCH team, we can see that it would be good to do so," said Jean Marie Claude Germain, the Haitian Minister of Environment. "In addition to preventing deforestation and protecting our water reserves, we are also discussing the need for a vaccination program in order to prevent the spread of diseases amongst the animal populations."

ARCH received an official request from the government of Haiti (made to WSPA on Jan. 21) asking for immediate assistance and that human resources be deployed to help with the emergency relief operation "as soon as possible."

Efforts by American Humane include:
-- Deploying Tracy Reis, program manager for American Humane's Animal
Emergency Services, to join relief efforts in Haiti, at the urgent
request of ARCH's lead agencies. Reis will arrive in Port-au-Prince on
Thursday, Jan. 28.
-- As the coalition's U.S.-based resource unit leader, American Humane
has responsibility for identifying volunteers from each organization
in the coalition and gathering skill and resource information on each
of them, in order to send the most highly effective teams to Haiti for
animal response.
-- American Humane was the first professional animal welfare organization
to join the coalition, has donated an initial $25,000 to help fund the
coalition's efforts, and expects to provide additional funding to this
response.
-- American Humane's Red Star Animal Emergency Services(TM) volunteers
are preparing for deployment to Haiti by updating their vaccinations
and receiving other medical assessments to ensure that they are fully
prepared to respond.
-- American Humane has notified more than 200 trained and FEMA-certified
animal rescue responders on its response roster. A smaller subset of
highly qualified responders will be hand-picked and may join teams on
the ground in Haiti, once long-term mission objectives are determined.

ARCH's activities to date include:
-- ARCH team members arrived in Port-au-Prince on Jan. 23 and spent the
day meeting with governmental authorities and local animal welfare
agencies.
-- ARCH members on the ground have begun assessing the state of health,
well-being and needs of the animals.
-- ARCH members expect to begin missions focused on vaccinating street
dogs and assisting with the care of livestock.
-- More than $150,000 has been raised to support the work of the
coalition, including the funding donated by American Humane and other
animal welfare groups that have joined the coalition.
-- A vehicle has been purchased and outfitted as a mobile veterinary unit
to support the response effort.

Many challenges face the team in Haiti:
-- According to a veterinarian who lives and works in Port-au-Prince, the
walls around many of the yards have fallen, and dogs that usually
return to their owners' homes are now displaced.
-- A rough estimate, according to the veterinarian, is that about 150,000
dogs live in the Port-au-Prince area, many of which are now wandering
the streets.
-- He also confirmed there was a substantial population of livestock in
the areas affected; most of them housed in "backyard" farms.
-- A lack of security has hindered some efforts to aid animals.
-- Securing a suitable site for food, water, medical supplies, etc., for
animals may take time while the needs of human consumables are
addressed first.

Statistics and Information:
-- About 150,000 dogs live in the Port-au-Prince area.
-- An estimated 600,000 head of cattle, believed to be mainly in rural
areas.
-- Livestock includes goats, chickens, swine, donkeys, horses and mules.
(FAOSTAT, © FAO Statistics Division 2010, 21 January 2010)


"Many partners in the coalition, and those of us who were aiding animals after Katrina, are well aware that the issues the Haitian people and animals face will be long term," said Debrah Schnackenberg, vice president of American Humane's Animal Protection Division and director of its Animal Emergency Services program. "It is our hope that the experience we all gained after Katrina, and the partnerships we have been building since then, will be demonstrated in the number of animals' lives we save and the Haitian families we help in the coming weeks and months."

American Humane, in addition to more than a dozen of the world's leading animal protection agencies, brings extensive experience in handling and rescuing animals after disasters. Animal rescue teams on the ground in Haiti are prepared to provide everything from direct rescue and veterinary care for injured animals to longer-term vaccinations to prevent outbreaks of disease, such as rabies and leptospirosis. For information on what leptospirosis is and how it affects animals, go to http://ahavod.com/watch_video.php?v=ce973dde9dcae75.

People who want to support these vital efforts and help other animals in disasters can donate at www.americanhumane.org/aes-donate. For more information, and to read our frequently updated blog on our efforts to help in Haiti, please visit www.americanhumane.org/haiti.

Animal welfare organizations formed the Animal Relief Coalition for Haiti (ARCH) to work together to bring aid to as many animals, and in as short a time, as possible. At present, ARCH partners include: International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), American Humane Association, Best Friends Animal Society, RSPCA (UK), In Defense of Animals, American Veterinary Medical Association, American Veterinary Medical Foundation, Antigua & Barbuda Humane Society, ASPCA, United Animal Nations, Kinship Circle, One Voice, Swiss Animal Protection, Palo Alto Humane Society (PAHS), People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Finnish Federation for Animal Welfare Associations, and Animal Medical Care Foundation (AMCF).

American Humane will be actively updating its website and social networks to inform people on the status of the coalition and how to be of help. Find us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/americanhumane and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/americanhumane. The information contained in this release can be reused and posted with proper credit given to the American Humane Association.

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Don’t forget your pets in a disaster

AAA Note: Now that the hurricane season is gearing up, remember to plan ahead for your safety and for your pet's safety.

(ARA) - When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, Richard Colar’s neighborhood was flooded with 13 feet of water. He lost his home and lived in a FEMA trailer for over three years following the storm. Even more devastating for Colar was that he was forced to flee without his beloved pet, a Siberian husky named Princess.

Miraculously, veterinarians located his lost dog weeks after the storm. The dog had been evacuated to Delaware. Due to the work of many volunteers, Colar and his family were among the lucky Katrina survivors who had their pets returned to them.

“It was so important to me to get my dog back, and I was so thankful,” he says. “Veterinarians saved my dog. I never knew that there were so many animal lovers in the world.”

Colar’s story illustrates why it’s so important for people to be prepared for natural disasters. This means planning an evacuation, not just for you and your family, but also your pets, livestock and horses.

The American Veterinary Medical Association offers a brochure on the subject, Saving the Whole Family, as well as an informative video with helpful instructions to help people evacuate with their pets in a disaster.

“During disasters it’s not unusual for hundreds of thousands of pets and livestock to be displaced. Many times this is the result of the fact that the owners have not made a thorough evacuation plan,” explains Dr. Heather Case, head of disaster preparation at the AVMA. “That’s why we urge everybody to make disaster plans today that include every member of the family, including those with four legs or wings, fur, scales or feathers.”

Case explains that in order to evacuate with an animal, pet and livestock owners need to have something in which to carry the animal. With pets, this would be a pet carrier that is large enough for the animal to spend a few days in comfortably. Even if you relocated to an emergency shelter that is willing to accept a pet, the animal will have to spend most of its time in that carrier or cage. For cats, the cage will have to be big enough for a small litter box.

If you are a livestock or horse owner, you’ll need access to a livestock carrier that can be towed by truck. Many times, farms will form cooperative evacuation networks as a cost effective way of ensuring that everybody’s animals are evacuated.

The AVMA also recommends that pet and livestock owners put together emergency kits. These kits should include enough food to last a week, any medications the animal requires, written prescriptions and other documentation, a photograph and identification information for the animal and, most importantly, a telephone list of feed suppliers, family members and veterinarians in the area where you expect to end up.

Proper identification is another important consideration. Consider preparing disaster tags for your pet’s collar. These should include your cell phone number, but also the telephone number for an out-of-town family member or friend, and perhaps the name of a hotel where you expect to evacuate. With this information, rescue responders will have a better chance of locating you if they rescue your pet.

The best kind of identification is imbedded microchip identification. Even if you put an informative tag on your pets collar or your horse’s halter, if it becomes separated from your animal the results can be disastrous. Microchips are embedded under the skin of an animal between the shoulder blades or on the neck and can be read with a scanner, ensuring the animal is never without ID.

For more information on this and other issues, visit www.avma.org or www.avmatv.org for a disaster preparation video.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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Be Prepared For Pet Emergencies

(NAPSI)-You can protect your precious pets in a time of emergency--if you prepare. Pet care experts at North Shore Animal League America, the world's largest no-kill animal rescue and adoption organization, recommend having a pet first-aid kit that's right where you need it if an animal emergency occurs.

You can buy kits that are pre-assembled or assemble your own. Keep them in different locations, for instance, one kit at home, one in the car, the office, a vacation home, wherever the pet spends time, so you're always ready. If customizing your own kit, use a container that's sturdy, waterproof and easy to spot when you need it in a hurry. Here is what every basic first-aid kit should contain:

Pet First-Aid Essentials

• Phone number and addresses: Veterinarian, emergency vet, animal poison control

• A basic pet first-aid book

• Photocopies of your pet's paperwork: Important medical records, vaccinations, etc.

• Medical gloves: To protect hands and prevent contamination

• Scissors: To cut gauze or the animal's hair

• Bottled water

• A mild antibacterial soap: To clean skin

• Paper towels

• Gauze pads: For cleaning and padding wounds

• Gauze rolls: To wrap wounds and can also be used as a temporary muzzle

• Alcohol prep pads: To sterilize equipment--NOT for use on wounds

• Self-adhesive bandages: Flexible bandage used to wrap and stabilize injuries (do not wrap too tightly)

• A large cloth towel: To wrap animal in

• Hydrogen peroxide: To clean minor wounds

• Eyewash: To gently but thoroughly flush out wounds and eyes

• Antibiotic ointment: For cuts and abrasions (never for eyes)

• Cotton applicator swabs

• Tweezers: To remove foreign objects from skin and paws and for proper removal of ticks.

Always make sure to read directions and warnings before applying any medications, either prescribed or over the counter, to your pet. In an emergency, contact your veterinarian for further instruction.

For more information on pets, including how to adopt and care for them, visit AnimalLeague.org.

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UGA Workshop Helps Counties Handle Animals During Disasters

After Hurricane Katrina, Don Hamilton and other University of Georgia employees took care of 3,000 abandoned animals for 10 days at a shelter in Mississippi. The experience sparked them to develop a workshop to help keep Georgia animals and citizens safer during disasters.

They’re now taking the “Handling Animals during Disasters” planning workshop to counties around Georgia.

“If you don’t have a place to shelter animals in disaster, people aren’t going to evacuate,” said Hamilton, homeland security coordinator for the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Georgia requires that each of its 159 counties have a local emergency operations plan. This plan contains a section on agriculture and natural resources, which includes handling companion animals. This is also required through the national Pet Evacuation Transportation Standards Act.

“After evacuation and disaster, there’s a tremendous problem with abandoned animals – dogs, cats, birds and livestock,” said Jeff Doles, director of Peach County’s Emergency Management Agency. “Before you can re-inhabit an area or allow citizens to return, you have to control the animal population. Now the encouragement is to take your animals with you so they don’t have to take care of themselves.”

Through the workshop, UGA experts helped Peach County research and develop its plan and guided various county players through mock disaster situations.

“They did a lot of groundwork where the rubber hits the road,” Doles said. “I can’t tell you how much help they were to us. We’re a small county. It would be virtually impossible for us to accomplish a plan of the magnitude we’ve got using our local resources.”

In February, Dole, UGA Cooperative Extension coordinator Frank Funderburk and others from the Fort Valley area tested their on-paper plan for handling animals in a disaster situation.

The two mock disasters “taught us to adapt,” said Doles, who is also the county’s fire chief. “We had some problems that we identified in our exercises, but we had a lot of strengths. I think it’s some of best training done in a while.”

The Georgia Department of Agriculture was a key player in the effort. UGA’s Fanning Institute helped facilitate it.

The county’s board of commissioners has since added the animal plan to the local emergency plan, which the city and county use to respond to and recover from any manmade or natural disaster.

As part of the plan, Doles is the first person county officials will call if there is a disaster. The third person on that list is Funderburk, who keeps a copy of the plan close by, ready to grab in case a tornado hits a veterinarian’s office or a hurricane sends evacuees up I-75, pets in hand, looking for shelter.

“I hope we don’t ever have to use it, but at least we’ve got a plan,” he said.

Hamilton is now helping emergency management officials in Brooks and Houston counties develop their own plans. These counties were chosen because of their proximity to Georgia’s interstates, their willingness to participate and their local resources.

The workshops are funded by a Department of Homeland Security grant through the Georgia Emergency Management Agency on behalf of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia.

By Stephanie Schupska
University of Georgia

Stephanie Schupska is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.