Having grown up on a farm in the Midwest, I have fond memories of the pets we had and the great experiences of raising and caring for those animals.
I can remember “Poochie,” “King,” “Mo-baby,” “Miss Kitty” and “Miss Peggy” (our pet hen) and many others that brought us happy times and companionship.
In the aftermath of Katrina, I have heard a number of sad accounts of how many left their homes, belongings and pets behind in hopes of surviving the worst natural disaster this country has ever witnessed.
In one account, a man talked about spending five days in his attic with his dog only to have to leave him hoping to be rescued by National Guardsmen.
In another instance, one man saw his dog drown, because he was not small enough to fit through the hole in a roof he used to escape.
Still others told stories of having to get into boats and helicopters and leave dogs and cats standing with the stare that asked the question, where are you going?
Since the evacuation of thousands of residents, the city has a large population of abandoned dogs, cats and other pets wandering without any indication they will ever see owners again.
In Louisiana state and federal agencies, along with numerous non-profit organizations, are united in an ongoing effort to save the pets and animals left helpless by Hurricane Katrina.
Rescuers wade or boat through the flooded city in a house-to-house search for stranded animals. So far, there have been more than 5,000 rescues of helpless pets.
“This is the largest animal rescue in the history of the United States, absolutely unprecedented in scope,” said Larry Hawkins, spokesperson for the Unified Incident Command for Animal Rescue in Louisiana. “We have a huge number of people working on this and it's a big success.”
FEMA Search and Rescue teams and elements of the military have also recovered numerous pets encountered in the course of their assigned humanitarian rescue mission.
Presently there are 3,850 animals being sheltered at facilities statewide and 445 rescued pets have been reunited with their owners.
While as an animal lover, and am happy and thrilled at the rescues, I only wish that the immediate dedication, energy and urgency being shown to rescue pets would have also been shown to the African American community in New Orleans who had to cheat death by scratching and clawing and beating hunger and thirst to survive for five days before a nation responded.
For many, leaving pets was a life or death decision.
I hate that our government (state and federal) put those loving pet owners in that situation to have to choose. It was a decision that many regret even today as some of their loving pets became casualties of the hurricane or were forced to fend for themselves on the streets or ended up in shelters. I hope someday they are reunited with owners, but until then you owners out there don’t need to fret. You made the best decision possible.
Pets are important, but God made us as human beings (Adam and Eve first on the continent of Africa) and we are the greatest of all his creation.
Black people are not animals. We are a proud people and part of the human race.
God expects us as the greatest country in the world to respect all life, but more so the lives of African-American children, parents and grandparents.
That deserves our greatest priority and that must not be forgotten and you know what I mean.