Remember the Katrina animal rescues? Well, here's a front line

flvegan

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Sat Nov-05-05 08:48 PM
Original message

Remember the Katrina animal rescues? Well, here's a front line

story from DUer, peacebuzzard...

Originally posted in the Veg forum (the "tofu ghetto") it deserves to be seen by everyone. It's a very positive story, with a sad beginning but a happy ending.

Seeing this stage of suffering, I applaud our own peacebuzzard for her drive...

The original post can be found here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=231x9660

However, I'll repost the entire thing here, as if it were originally put forth in this forum...

The Story of Sweetie, October 6, 2005, New Orleans

My first day doing S&R I tagged behind two veterans who were to leave
for
Ohio the next day. (they had been doing rescue for a week) we had
several
food and water drops and then went to a house that had been reported,
from
where is uncertain, but had shown up on the lists just 2 days before.
We
arrived to a very small and totally unmarked home in a very ravaged
neighborhood by the canal that had flooded in the area up to the
roofs.
This area had plucked people off roofs by helicopter. By unmarked I
mean the
big spray paint Xs and notes left by previous rescuers. The X is a
system
used by the NG to record date of entry, DOAs etc. Most of the homes in
NO
are marked along with S&R teams info now on food and water drops, and
DOAs
or animals taken.

There was no way in the home, the 3 doors were totally pressed shut by
the
piles of debris from the inside, and after working and pounding on them
for
45 minutes, we gained entry through a small give in the door. The
insides
of these homes are indescribable. The debris and mold and unidentified
rotten remains of what used to be pile up everywhere. In this case it
was
up half way inside the first room and about two feet in the second
room.
These rooms were dark. The kitchen had more light but the debris and
the
refrigerator had sealed the back door shut, which is why we couldn't
earlier
gain entry. The house was totally silent and a very bad odor in the
air.
The one smaller rescuer had gone in ahead of me, and I was behind w/ a
flashlight. We were wading through mold and garbage and climbing over
all
of it. I was certain the "dog" who was reported in there had to be
under
all the debris and decayed. But the rescuer ahead of me was now in the
room
beyond the kitchen and the dog barked. We had pounded on that home, 45
minutes and waded through the devastation for at least 15 minutes and
the
poor animal was silent. I was elated, to say the least.

There was no way he could have come out the way we came in so we
crawled
back out, and with our adrenaline pumped up now, we tore into the
panels of
yet another door closer to the dog, and I crawled through this now
smaller
opening and moved the garbage inside and used a crowbar to open the
door to
let the other smaller rescuer in for assistance. The dog had not moved
and
was only keeping his huge head up looking at us. His head was attached
to
a skeleton frame covered only with a thin layer of fur. He was a
starving
emaciated pit bull. WE threw treats and food and he got up and ate
ravenously. It took us another 20 minutes to throw treats so we could
become his friends and we finally coaxed him out.

Alicia, he is now in the ICU unit at Lamar Dixon with about maybe 7 or
8
other living skeletons that have been pulled out from the wreckage and
debris of New Orleans. They are so grateful for the love they are
receiving
and for their clean blankets and for the sun when they are walked.
This PitBull, I am just calling him Sweetie for now, but I hope somehow
the
stories of all of these last survivors being pulled out can be known.
By the way, the story of how he was reported is unknown, and all of
these
dogs will need foster homes as soon as they regain their strength. The
situation is very static now at Lamar Dixon and I just hope that we can
keep
track of these miracle animals. There are not many days left either
politically or physically for these animals, please keep the word going
out
that much help and as many hands as possible are needed for these
critical
animals.

My first day doing S&R I tagged behind two veterans who were to leave
for
Ohio the next day. (they had been doing rescue for a week) we had
several
food and water drops and then went to a house that had been reported,
from
where is uncertain, but had shown up on the lists just 2 days before.
We
arrived to a very small and totally unmarked home in a very ravaged
neighborhood by the canal that had flooded in the area up to the
roofs.
This area had plucked people off roofs by helicopter. By unmarked I
mean the
big spray paint Xs and notes left by previous rescuers. The X is a
system
used by the NG to record date of entry, DOAs etc. Most of the homes in
NO
are marked along with S&R teams info now on food and water drops, and
DOAs
or animals taken.

There was no way in the home, the 3 doors were totally pressed shut by
the
piles of debris from the inside, and after working and pounding on them
for
45 minutes, we gained entry through a small give in the door. The
insides
of these homes are indescribable. The debris and mold and unidentified
rotten remains of what used to be pile up everywhere. In this case it
was
up half way inside the first room and about two feet in the second
room.
These rooms were dark. The kitchen had more light but the debris and
the
refrigerator had sealed the back door shut, which is why we couldn't
earlier
gain entry. The house was totally silent and a very bad odor in the
air.
The one smaller rescuer had gone in ahead of me, and I was behind w/ a
flashlight. We were wading through mold and garbage and climbing over
all
of it. I was certain the "dog" who was reported in there had to be
under
all the debris and decayed. But the rescuer ahead of me was now in the
room
beyond the kitchen and the dog barked. We had pounded on that home, 45
minutes and waded through the devastation for at least 15 minutes and
the
poor animal was silent. I was elated, to say the least.

There was no way he could have come out the way we came in so we
crawled
back out, and with our adrenaline pumped up now, we tore into the
panels of
yet another door closer to the dog, and I crawled through this now
smaller
opening and moved the garbage inside and used a crowbar to open the
door to
let the other smaller rescuer in for assistance. The dog had not moved
and
was only keeping his huge head up looking at us. His head was attached
to
a skeleton frame covered only with a thin layer of fur. He was a
starving
emaciated pit bull. WE threw treats and food and he got up and ate
ravenously. It took us another 20 minutes to throw treats so we could
become his friends and we finally coaxed him out.

Alicia, he is now in the ICU unit at Lamar Dixon with about maybe 7 or
8
other living skeletons that have been pulled out from the wreckage and
debris of New Orleans. They are so grateful for the love they are
receiving
and for their clean blankets and for the sun when they are walked.
This PitBull, I am just calling him Sweetie for now, but I hope somehow
the
stories of all of these last survivors being pulled out can be known.
By the way, the story of how he was reported is unknown, and all of
these
dogs will need foster homes as soon as they regain their strength. The
situation is very static now at Lamar Dixon and I just hope that we can
keep
track of these miracle animals. There are not many days left either
politically or physically for these animals, please keep the word going
out
that much help and as many hands as possible are needed for these
critical animals.