Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Wilma hit the Sanctuary at full force

Friday Palena stayed home from work to begin the process of securing over 400 animals. Crates and cages were put together - animals moved to homes for the duration of the storm and birds caught to go into the Hen House. Some animals were lucky enough to be moved into homes or barns to be protected and through the duration of the storm. Then the news came that Wilma ha stalled and would not hit until a day later than forecasted. Sunday night all was ready and animals were caged and crated. The Emus proved to be elusive as did Escapa the one dog who wants to live at the Sanctuary but who does not want anyone to touch him. Early Monday morning Wilma came knocking. The winds howled as did all the animals. The house rocked and rolled and I must say it was a scary ride. With terror I watched as the roof of one of the outside building that had 41 dogs in it was first blown off and then fell in. I watched Escapa running all over the place not knowing what to do - each time he would come to the door I tried to coax him in but he would not come. The storm lasted longer than expected and I kept praying that the animals were safe. Next a tree went down and I watched as it looked like it hit the car - later to find out that it had missed the car by barely an inch. Tree after tree blew down creating havoc all over the place and tearing out fences. The feed shed which houses all of the Sanctuary bird and stock feed was blown a quarter of an acre away. As the winds subsided I noticed in terror a large black shape jump out the side of the building housing the dogs. It was one of my Katrina dogs from New Orleans. A big chow we named Adonis for his very loving nature. He ran to the house barking and I followed him to the building. I opened the door and broke out in tears. The roof was down on the cages. Adonis and I started tearing out the cages to get dogs out. He literally was helping. Sherry got here as soon as she could. After an hour or so we got everyone out but not before a beam landed on my arm and another on my head. I did not feel anything until everyone was safe. When the pain finally set in I realized that I had been hurt but had no time to think about it. Next it was on to the pig pen. It was a mess but everyone was well. All of the animals are safe. We did lose one dog after the hurricane who got out of his crate and ran into our back property. He ran into a rattlesnake and there was not much I could do as we could not get him out of here to a vets. When I saw he would not make it we had to humanly put him down. That made for a very heartbreaking moment as he had survived the storm. Two baby quails that hatched during the hurricane with six others did not make it as we could not keep an even temperature on the brooder but the other six are doing well.

Today is Thursday. We have gotten a new gate up. Joe has been working from sunup to sundown to get the place secure for the animals and finally today we have a gate up. He had to drive 90 miles to get one. We still have no electricity but do have the generator. Our cell phones work when they decide to but sprint told us how to make the phones work so we can get calls but cannot call out until they repair something on the lines. Tomorrow we should be able to work on some of the kennels. Along side us has been Karl and Sherry. Today three boys who have lost their home totally came to help us to earn money for their mom and dad. It is very sad to see the devastation around us and we know we are blessed to still have our home standing and all animals alive. That is not the case. We are having to haul 250 gallons of water a day into the place for the animals to get water as we have no electricity so our well is not working.

Pictures below will show some of the damage here at the Sanctuary. We received over 100 animals from Hurricane Katrina who now have survived two hurricanes in a matter of months. They are now looking for homes. Please visit our adoptable dogs and see if any would fit into your family.

Two of our hurricane Katrina babies Topper and Sasha look out thankful to finally be out of their crates.

Sally one of our goats looks around in amazement as her pen is a mess and she let us know her displeasure.

One of our kennels devastated with trees falling into it and fences broken.

The picture above and below show more damage to fences on out place.

Tree that crashed the gate and one of our cars that was barely missed by an inch.

This was part of our feed shed that was blown one quarter of an acre away and over the pigs pen into another kennel

This is our pigs pen - the barrels are our feed barrels

This is one of our neighbors homes

Another structure blown apart

Another of our babies hatched in the height of the storm

A better picture of the tree that took our gate - Peanut went with me to check it out

Power lines were down all over. The news stated that Hendry County had over 150 poles that were snapped not just down and all had to be replaced.

More damage and more downed lines

This is our road. We could not tell where the road was and where the canals were. The water was over our door jams on the door

Another tree down in another kennel

And yet another tree through another kennel

Tanna and Brie help mom check out the damage

Buddy and Rusty two of our older boys were happy to be out of crates. They are hoping to find a home this year. We rescued them last year when their owner died and they were going to be put to sleep

To share some of our animals these were taken after the hurricane - most are looking for homes. Rocky one of our Katrina dogs will be reunited with his owner and a few are our own personal dogs. Maybe one will catch your eye and will fit into your family. Also below is the building the dogs were in that the roof came down on.

This is Jewells - she weathered the storm just fine.

We can't forget our birds who give a great sense of joy to us = One of our peacocks a but testy after being in a crate but none the less happy to be out

Perseus our sweet little Lady Amhurst Reg Golden Pheasant was perhaps one of the most happiest to be out besides Gretchen who likes to complain

Two of our pigeons were parading around letting everyone know they were glad to be safe

Princess is one of our Hurricane Katrina Dog - she has survived 2 hurricanes in a short period of time and is as sweet as can be - all she needs now is a home

Rocky is one of two of our Katrina dogs that will be going home to their owners. He is a sweet little guy and we love him alot.

Sasha was one of the dogs in the building that the roof came in on. She is one of our older dogs but still deserves a chance to have her own family

Vassie (Vascillia) is one of the rottweiler's that run about the place. To her it was all a picnic and she tormented the others in the house.

The pictures above and below show how we re having to haul water in by hand to water all the animals. Thank you to Karl and James who haul about 250 gallons for us each day

Jingles is another of our Hurricane Katrina dogs. What a sweetie this boy is and very friendly - also hoping to find a new family this year to play with

Bieta - she did just well during the hurricane and like Vassie wanted to play the whole time

More of our birds so thankful to be out in the sun after being locked in crates for three days while the water subsided.

And four of our bunnies in the pics above and below who were just glad all the chickens were out in the yard instead of harassing them

Here is one of our strutters who let us know that they were not happy at all being in a crate for three days

To the baby ducks they thought it was a picnic - we had put a large bowl of water for them to play in during this ordeal and all made out very well

The Emus are glad it is over and as you can see much blew into their pen

This is Escapa. So badly abused no one can touch him although eh will eat out of a spoon from me as long as I do not put my hands on him. This year he will get a hug from me. At least I keep telling him that. Several months ago you could not get even 20 feet around him so he has come a long way and runs in the house yard with out own dogs.

Our guineas are loud creatures. Sweet but loud and even over the howls of Wilma we could hear them complaining that they wanted out of their crates.

This is what is left of the building the dogs were in - when the steel roof blew off the inner cross boards fell in on the crates and cages.

Another of our birds glad that Wilma is over.

Our geese are also loud creatures and are happy they are in their pen.

And this is Happy which he always is - he greeted us with a smile and a kiss when we finally got him out of his cage.

Friday

We just received word that our warehouse in Pompano that houses over 10,000 pounds of food for us was demolished in the Hurricane. We are now without food for the animals. I did manage to get into Wal-Mart this am and purchase dry food for the animals. We are working on repairs today and hoping that something will be salvageable at the warehouse in Pompano. We have someone going to look and see.

Well its 8 at night and after I took a very cold hand bath and got ready to lay down the electricity came on. What a blessing and a perfect birthday gift for me, After seeing the damage at the warehouse in Pompano and knowing that so much was lost I was a bit down. But to have electricity on is a great gift. We will no longer have to hand haul the water to the dogs and can have more time to start repairs to get this place back to normal. One of our biggest needs is sheds. Losing our sheds for the feed has been a horrid loss for us as we now have no place to keep food except in our living room. But tonight I shall just be thankful that we have ELECTRICITY!

Sharing some more of our pics and more of the dogs we have that are looking for homes. Now with so much damage to place them in new homes where they can feel safe and secure and finally at rest, especially our babies that have gone through both Wilma and Katrina. Again please contact pdorsey@sanctuaryanimalrefuge.org if you see a dog you think may be a loving part of your family.

This is Blanca she is a doll baby, loving but does not like cats

Punkin is a great and loving dog. She resides with Red who is not up for adoption and loves attention. She surely mocks all of societies beliefs of pitbulls.

This is Red. Red was used as a bait dog - you can read his story on our site. He has come so far living now with punkin. Loving and playing with children. Although not up for adoption if a special home who has pitt knowledge - does not ever use any negative training - understands the breed were to fall in love with him and make him the king he truly is we would consider him being placed. He is a loving animal. He was taught to be a scared and frightened animal. He plays with children now - but we also know in the wrong hands he could again become the frightened animal that first came here.

The two pictures top and below are Milo. One of the Sanctuary clowns. Still very young and wiggly he entertains us a lot. While couped in his cage he entertained himself by rubbing against the side causing some skin irritation. Thus when he came out he had to have stinky NuStock put on him which is the yellow in the picture. Anyone not knowing about NuStock should findout - the stuff is great for everything from Mange to cuts and wounds to skin irritations and heals things very quickly.

Missy is one of the Hurricane Katrina dogs - she is very sweet and loving. She loves to play and run around her kennel. She has graciously agreed to share it with four others now and is doing very well with all the dogs in with her. She told me I did not have to hurry and fix the fences she was enjoying the company. The interesting part is that we were told she did not socialize well with other animals. I can say now that since she is in with a hound, another rottweiler, an elkhound, a mutt and the pitt-hound mix below, that she does socialize very well.

Harpo another Katrina dog is a true clown. He loves attention and loves to smile - he is very young and very sweet

Tippy another Katrina dog is a doll - a working dog for sure -

This is Adonis and one of his buddies that he worked to get out of the building. This dog is truly incredible and would make a great dog in any home.

Benj is a great dog. Kind of one of those dogs that just plods along with any situation. He is very calm - another Katrina dog - a bit shy when you first meet him but then a real lover when he knows you like him.

This love, who we call Romeo, was glad to get out of the building when the roof came down. We had placed him and his best friend a pitt close to the door. When they had been transported to us from Katrina we had been told they were best friends and needed to be close to each other - it was a smart move for us as we were able to just pull their cages out of the way. This baby is a doll baby. His name is Ali because he is a Boxer!

This is Sarge, Romeo's friend. They are together now. Sarge got a scrape on his forehead so has NuStock on it but what a doll he is and what a talker - he can talk about most anything and loves people

What people need to realize is that once these dogs were out we had about 40 running free since so many of our crates were damaged. Mind you these dogs DID NOT FIGHT with each other. One of the things that people are always amazed at when they come here is the amount of dogs that run our front yard that get along. These are breeds that are so called or labeled by society as "vicious breeds" In our front yard and in our house are five German Shepherds - three pittbulls - three rottweilers - a wolf - Escapa a rottweiler mix and Cali a little mix girl. They live in harmony. When people ask how we do it the answer is always simple. Its how a dog is trained and mostly that the animals know what is expected of them from our own actions and reactions.

Saturday - October 30, 2005

Well we have one fence fixed. Not nearly enough with going to work tomorrow but better than yesterday. The land is completely dry now except for a very few places. Snakes are in abundance. The little pigmy rattlers are all over and we have removed two already. We have spotted tons more but they get away before we can get them. We are hoping to work with Petsmart to receive food for the animals. Diane from Wildlife Care Center in Fort Lauderdale managed to get me a message stating that they are a mess down there. Anyone who can help them with birds please contact them. Animals are all doing well. We have managed to bath a few dogs and birds to get mud off them and are medicating skin irritations from the stress of being locked up. Barbie our sultan hen loves her bath and was thrilled to be a sparkling white again. I will be trying to post some more of the animals later today but for now we must get back to removing trees and trying to get some more kennels fixed.

Many neighbors are bringing animals to our gates that have been injured or who have not eaten in days. We are trying out best to help them as well as take care of our own. So many of these animals in this community were just left out in the storm to fend on their own. So many injuries.

Julio and Joe spent the day building a new kennel. They also repaired the skirting on the house as well as cleaned up the yard. Of course under the watchful direction of some of our animals I am sure that everything was done correctly.

Above and below Tchoupitoulis our resident wolf made sure that everything was done properly. He enjoyed grabbing Julio's shoes or tools from Joe.

Tchoupi decided he needed re-enforcements so enlisted Faera and Rocky to keep an eye on the guys.

Julio made a big dent in getting a lot of the debris and tree limbs out of the yard today. They are great places for snakes to hide so we want to make sure to get the yard cleaned out as fast as possible. You can see one of the piles of debris we have had to haul out of the yard.

Bieta is a sweet little girl looking for a home. She was just spayed before the hurricane so is waiting her trip back to the vet. She just laid around or walked around watching the work getting done.

Thursday - November 3

Whew it has been a week. Nothing of course to me is better than my animals but when I know I work at a place that is concerned about the community I feel doubly blessed. The employees of Ruden McClosky where I work have been gathering donations of food, clothes, and household items. For the next few Saturdays we will be distributing these items to the people in our community who are in the most need after Wilma. Also - PetSmart has also donated $1,000 in food for the Sanctuary for the rabbits and dogs. We will be picking that up on Saturday as well. Also MaryAnn from Broadmoor Sanctuary donated $5,000 for a new shed and food. Staff has been working long hours to make repairs as there was so much damage here but we know with the support of the community and the great people we have here that soon all 408 animals will be safe and sound once again. The Sanctuary would really like to thank its angels. Please visit the corporations that help to support us which include - Sunset Feeds - - Indian Trace Animal Hospital - Pompano Pet Lodge - Upper Keys VCA Animal Hospital - University Animal Hospital - Clewiston Animal Hospital - Pets Best - we also wish to thank all the private individuals who have adopted dogs from us as well as donated goods and who have given us financial support.

THANK YOU TRI-COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY

Thanks to the support of Tri-County the Sanctuary will have a new infirmary. Arnold a supporter of Tri-County is bringing a 24 x 40 foot modular up here that is six rooms a small bathroom and a kitchenette up. The cost for this huge building? Only the setup and delivery fee which came to $3,700.00. Again thanks to MaryAnn for making this building possible. Finally we will have a real clinic and a place to house sick animals - pregnant moms - or animals with other needs. Pictures will follow.

RUDEN MCCLOSKY EMPLOYEES MAKING A COMMUNITY HAPPY

Saturday - staff was here very early today to get the 408 animals fed and watered before heading to the Pavilion at the Clubhouse to hand out items donated by employees of Ruden McCloskey. Throughout the day we heard stories of many families who have lost their homes - who are still without power or food. Horror tales to those who in the beginning had nothing and now have even less. To make a happier day one of the Sanctuary vets Dr. Keene of Clewiston was there giving rabies shots. It was with great joy running through my heart as I watched families picking through clothes and food - smiling and happy. Holding shirts up to them - or trying on a pair of shoes - thankful for a bar of soap - a comb - Debbie McTigue's new towels. What was cast a way items to us became gold to them. The Sanctuary had donated animal items - leashes - collars - flea and tick meds - worm meds - bowls - shampoos - treats - supplements - calf manna - and of course a lot of feed. At the end of the day although tired the staff and I were able to leave happy knowing we had made a few people in turmoil a bit happier with food for a dinner - food for their animals and a clean set of clothes. We will be there again next weekend hopefully with more supplies. One of the sweetest moments of the day was a baby pig that came to visit ......anyone knowing me knows I could not resist giving it a kiss and a treat. Another fantastic moment was when JoAnn showed up with a SUV full of dog food. Since we had ran out and so many were in need she was a gift from heaven. JoAnn and her husband Mike adopted two dogs from the Sanctuary over a year ago. Soleil a deaf rottweiler who is now training to be a working dog and Amari . Amari was a rottweiler mix who was very troubled. She had been kept in a cage all of her life and had been mistreated. She had not liked people much but Mike and JoAnn saw her beauty. She is now an incredible dog who we had the honor to babysit a while back. Mike and JoAnn are true angels here and her gift from Amari and Soleil to the dogs in the community and the Sanctuary were a highlight of the day. JoAnn promises a picture and story of the journey Soleil and Amari are making for the website. JoAnn also makes leashes and collars. When seh met Eddie on a previous visit she saw the need for him to have a "Special" harness and set to work making it. She delivered it to him today and he wears it with love and pride that JoAnn and Mike find him as special as we do. Enjoy the pictures below. My fellow co-workers at Ruden - we work in a great place that is truly community driven. I wish you all could have seen the faces of the people who received the items you all worked hard to gather - my love and thanks to you all. A total of 35 families were helped today by the generous donations of the Ruden staff, The Sanctuary and JoAnn, Mike, Amari and Soleil.

And here is Eddie with his new harness JoAnn made him. Eddie sends you a big hug and kiss JoAnn

Our second week of collections went well. I tell you the employees of Ruden McCloskey are the best. Sunday John Farquar, Esq., a partner with the firm drove to the Sanctuary and visited one of the families we are helping. Brenda and Roger Ward, two of their children and their grandchildren had moved to a bigger and better home - hoping to move forward in life. At the beginning of the hurricane they all sat in a bedroom of the double wide they had just rented. Shortly after the storm began the roof went and then the walls. They spent the duration of the hurricane huddled beside a bed with towels and a blanket over them. John and his wife Mary had brought up a car load of food. They joined me and went over to give some to the Ward family. Below is their home and Petey their son receiving the gift from John and Mary. We thank the Naples Ruden McCloskey office for joining our Ft. Lauderdale office in rebuilding and helping the people of Montura.

The food that was left was put into a cart and hauled to the Sanctuary house. We then distributed to another 8 families later that evening. The Hastie family had come up to help with some of the cleaning of the Sanctuary and to visit with their own dogs Ginger and Smokey who are staying with us until they move. They cleaned up the kennel that Ginger and Smokey are in as well as Dancers field. We are also very thankful for their help.

If you would like to donate in our efforts to rebuild the Sanctuary and in the care of the animals please visit our DONATIONS page to see what is needed or to make a cash donation. We thank you in advance for your help. Or if you see any dogs that you might be interested in making a part of your family please contact us at pdorsey@sanctuaryanimalrefuge.org There are over 100 dogs here looking for homes - soon they will all be on our adoptables page.