Hurricane Rescue Diaries

Humane Society of Missouri Rescue Team Called Back to New Orleans
to Assist Shelter in Rebuilding Animal Control Operations
Rescue Team will Reunite Dogs Rescued from Hurricane Katrina with Owners

Rickey and Bailey pause for a photo before they depart from HSMO headquarters.

November 7, 2005 - Two members of the Humane Society of Missouri’s Disaster Response Team, Tim Rickey, Assistant Director of Rescue and Investigations and Christine Bailey, Humane Officer departed for a ten-day trip to New Orleans at the request of the Louisiana SPCA to assist the organization in continuing animal search and rescue operations.

They also have been asked to provide shelter operation expertise to help rebuild the shelter which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. More than 95 percent of the LASPCA staff lost everything in the hurricane and 90 percent of the shelter staff have been unable to return to work.

The LASPCA currently is working out of a temporary animal shelter in a converted warehouse in Algiers Parish, in New Orleans. In addition to their primary task of helping rebuild the Louisiana animal control operation, the Humane Society of Missouri team also reunited four dogs rescued after Hurricane Katrina with their owners. 

Sparky and Jake, four-year-old male Beagles along with Tank, a three-year-old male English bulldog,and Dawg arrived in St. Louis after the hurricane. After many phone calls, the Humane Society of Missouri staff was able to contact their owners. All four dogs will be reunited with their owners today in New Orleans.

Sparky, Jake, Tank and Dawg are on board and ready to
see their owners again.

The team arrived in New Orleans on Monday night at 8:30 p.m. at a
temporary shelter in Algiers. They made contact with owners of the four dogs, and made arrangements for them to be picked up tomorrow.  They had dinner and then headed to the trailer to sleep and prepare for the next day. Read more about the Humane Society of Missouri's return trip to New Orleans.