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| The HSUS |
A family, reunited outside the Kirkwood
shelter. |
By Polly Shannon
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa—The hospital worker slowly guided the elderly, frail man into the temporary animal shelter.
In the floods, the man had lost everything—everything, that is, except for just one hope. He hoped that he could find and be reunited with his little Pomeranian mix pup, Boomer.
The man and his escort approached the shelter re-claim desk and gave the man's name and address. The paperwork was in order and they were directed to go to cage 512.
As they neared the spot, though, the man's heart began to sink.
"That's not my dog," he said softly, the only words he spoke during the process. Bewildered, he and his escort went to look in the area where stray dogs were staying. Maybe Boomer was there. A shelter worker hurried back to the re-claim desk to report the problem.
In the meantime, the little Pomeranian mutt sat back on his haunch and just stared quizzically as he watched the old man leave.
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"As Tuesday began, more volunteers moved in to help care for the 700-plus animals being housed in an emergency shelter we manage at Kirkwood Community College, in Cedar Rapids."
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"I couldn't believe what I was hearing," said Diane Webber, an HSUS director who is in charge of the emergency shelter here. "There was no question in my mind that was his dog, so I took him back there myself to figure out the confusion."
This time, as they neared cage 512, the pup wasn't going to let his guardian get away. Boomer was so excited he was up on his two hind legs practically doing a jig.
Boomer's dad still didn't recognize him, and in an instant, it became clear to Webber why: Boomer's tannish-blond fur had been shaved off, as is customary in emergency shelter situations, and so her guardian hadn't recognized him.
When Webber told him what happened, the old man quietly chuckled, not even bothering to stifle the cry that came with it.
Rescues Turn to Reunions
Webber is among a dozen HSUS emergency responders who came to Cedar Rapids last week from various parts of the country to help save animals in peril from the floods. Acting as the lead organization at the request of the state, The HSUS, along with the Missouri Humane Society, Code 3 Associates, and several hundred volunteers have responded to more than 1,000 calls.
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| The HSUS |
Dogs wait for their families at the
temporary shelter. |
About 700 pets are at the emergency shelter set up at Kirkwood Community College here, with about 15 to 20 guardians coming in per day to reclaim their pets.
The temporary shelter is being administered by The HSUS.
"The Kirkwood campus has been an ideal disaster base camp," said Scotlund Haisley, senior director of emergency services for The HSUS and commander of operations during deployments such as the one in Cedar Rapids.
"As an equine center college with a veterinarian technology school attached, it wasn't that difficult to make the transition to an emergency shelter. We were lucky in that sense."
In some cases, guardians have been identified by paperwork but not found. That could have been a tragedy for one dog with a severely broken leg with bone exposed.
"This poor dog needed immediate medical assistance, but because we were unable to locate the guardian, we had to go to the state to get surgery authorized," Haisley said.
"The state gave us the go-ahead and The HSUS has agreed to pay for it. Times are tough as people are trying to make it back to their homes, and to be able to save the life of a family pet who has been separated from his loved ones is deeply gratifying."
Floods Make Clean Water Precious Commodity
The mild temperatures and sunny weather of the past several days have been a boon to rescue efforts throughout the state, but as always, the irony of flood-ravaged areas is the dearth of potable water.
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| The HSUS |
| Helping flood survivors get back on their feet. |
"It's definitely a case of personal hygiene taking a backseat to the needs of the animals and the community," Haisley said.
"When you're involved in animal rescue missions, you quickly get past your comfortable life back home and learn to tolerate, maybe even appreciate, things like the dank and musty smells rising from the streets after the water has receded, leaving muddy debris in its wake.
You also get used to sharing tight sleeping quarters with colleagues as you bunk together in an RV for days.
"But many of us will leave when our duty here is done, and the community will live with this disaster for months to come," he continued.
"The HSUS' mission to reunite people with their pets is always a critical one, but in times like this, when lives have been turned upside down, you realize just how important your job really is."
