Call FEMA! They're deciding today if they'll allow pet rescues!

[iconoclastic cat]

On Kos:

HELP! Urgent! FEMA decision upcoming for animal rescue: PLEASE HELP!

by The Gnostic
Thu Sep 8th, 2005 at 12:51:25 EDT

Right now the pets aren't being rescued by FEMA or the other regular rescue workers, only pet rescue groups... they are slowly starving to death!!!

I just got off the phone with FEMA in Washington and was told that a decision is upcoming in regards to evacuating pets with the holdouts.

Also as part of that decision will be whether FEMA orders rescue workers to rescue pets when they can.

Please PLEASE provide whatever polite urging that you can with this decision:

The Honorable Michael Brown
Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response
500 C St. S.W.
Washington, DC 20472
202-646-3900
202-646-3930 (fax)
[e-mail]

They say they will post their decision on their web-site.

[ellie]

1. I just called FEMA

and got through right away. Please call everyone!

[QuettaKid]

71. PLEASE EVERYONE CALL!!!!

I just did and was very polite...spoke with Marcia CLark. She said she had over 1 hundred calls in 30 mins. CALL NOW!!!

[iconoclastic cat]

88. NEW NUMBER for FEMA; number is 202-646-2763

Sorry to repost, but it's way downthread

[rumpel]

2. I have to write. I am afraid will start crying..

[leftchick]

3. At least some are getting out whith their rescued humans

FEMA is a disaster....

http://www.americanhumane.org/site/PageServer?pagename=pa_disaster_relief

News reports continue to show animals that need help. For those of you concerned about the dogs recently featured in media reports, we’re happy to learn that those stranded on the roof of Lindy Boggs Hospital were rescued by the hospital's owner Tenet Healthcare and brought to a nearby shelter. And Snowball, the dog that was taken from the arms of a boy departing the Superdome, has been found at a shelter and efforts continue to find her family. American Humane will be on the scene as long as it takes to track down animals like these and reunite them with their families.

American Humane reports that in one single water rescue mission yesterday, we were able to find and rescue 14 cats. These are animals that not only were stranded and afraid with nowhere to turn, but also adding to the chaos of the area, much of which is still underwater.

American Humane’s volunteers are operating a shelter that houses consistently 300 animals at a time. Weary people cross the road from the human shelter each day to visit, feed, water and walk the cats, dogs, ferrets, snakes and birds that we're housing.

We’re coordinating resources to bring in extra help, more veterinarians, and information technology so that we’re better able to learn about the animals that need us and bring them to safety.

The goal for yesterday was to get a handle on the incoming process and we secured two laptops and a printer. Through the generous help of Shelter Buddy Software, we are inputting the names of all our animals into the database, so that we can better track them.

[faithfulcitizen]

4. i sent feedback here...

https://disasterhelp.gov/portal/jhtml/customization/feedback.jhtml;jsessionid=2DVJ0BONGUUOLQFIAAGCFEY

[lukasahero]

24. Thanks for the link

I just wrote.

[Lorien]

5. Kick!

:kick:

[bowens43]

6. FEMA rescue pets?

There are still HUMAN BEINGS who haven't been rescued. I like anmimals as much as the next guy but IMO using FEMA to rescue pets is a waste of time and money.

[rumpel]

9. FEMA had a plan for pets, which were ignored. Please read and hopefully

you understand owners of pets consider them family, leaving them behind adds additional emotional trauma to the humans!

http://www.helpinganimals.com/f-evacanimals.asp

Worse, although the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) guidelines on animal handling in a disaster were carefully crafted years ago in cooperation with PETA and other animal organizations, our government has evidently thrown them out the window, even going so far as to order citizens to abandon their animals under threat of arrest—animals who in many cases were considered members of the family and were all that these people had left.

Volunteer Steve Miller told The Advocate in Baton Rouge that "FEMA has told us we cannot take the pets" along with the distraught human victims that they are evacuating. "They told that we could not take one cat or dog in our boats," Miller said. "It's a stupid rule. More people are going to die because of that."

Telling these exasperated citizens of our country to abandon the animals they care for so deeply is, in fact, illegal. Chapter 14, Section 102.1(A)(1)(d) of Louisiana's Revised Statutes, for example, states that anyone who abandons an animal is guilty of the crime of cruelty to animals.

[iconoclastic cat]

11. Bush should be charged with violation of that statute.

[newswolf56]

48. Here is more damning evidence the Bush Administration deliberately...

worsened the conditions of the evacuation to inflict maximum psychological injury on the displaced persons, in this case by imposing forcible abandonment of pets:

Worse, although the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) guidelines on animal handling in a disaster were carefully crafted years ago in cooperation with PETA and other animal organizations, our government has evidently thrown them out the window, even going so far as to order citizens to abandon their animals under threat of arrest—animals who in many cases were considered members of the family and were all that these people had left.

This OP should be cross-posted to the indictment threads, especially since FEMA's violation of its own rules is clearly an extension of the overall Bush policy of treating the poor and disabled with ever-more-open, ever-intensifying fascist harshness.

[iconoclastic cat]

56. What a freakin' nightmare this whole thing is.

[hyphenate]

12. Yes, and a large part of those left

won't LEAVE if they can't take their pets with them!! You can't expect people to leave their pets behind if they think they will never see them again, do you?

[Mutley]

55. I certianly wouldn't.

And no amount of "you're not in that situation so you don't know what you'd do" will change my mind. I. Would. Not. Leave. My. Dogs.

[Booster]

60. Yep, and I know damn well that my dog would NEVER leave me.

[Mutley]

61. That's for sure!

[hyphenate]

14. repeat--please delete!

[hyphenate]

15. repeat--please delete!

[Lindacooks]

28. No reason why they can't do both.

[Kenroy]

33. it's not an either/or question

we can save both.

[Mutley]

54. I understand why you feel that way, but...

this thread is not intended as a debate about rescuing animals in a disaster (there have been many of those and most of them have been deleted). This thread is for those of us who disagree with you to get information on how we can email FEMA. If you don't agree with us, then you can move on to another thread. Thanks.

[Barack_America]

68. And I would just like to point out that MANY of these rescues...

...are being performed in the poor parts of the city that are almost completely under water. So it's not as if the rich are getting the spoils again.

It is the POOR people who could not afford to go to hotels and had to go shelters instead, where no pets were allowed

It is the POOR people who didn't have cars, got stuck in their homes and had to be rescued, where no pets were allowed

It is the POOR people who got stuck in that god-awful Superdome and had to flee on buses, where no pets were allowed

So you see, many of these animals belong to the poor and may just be the only thing they ever recover from New Orleans. I care about the animals, of course, but I also suffer just as much for the people who love them and are worried sick about them!

[Lecky]

72. There are some people who don't want to leave b/c they would be

abandoning their pets. I completely sympathize with them since I'm not sure I could leave my 2 dogs behind either...too heartbreaking.

A lot of people consider their pets like members of the family...I don't consider this a waste of money AT ALL.

[Cattledog]

77. That's a freeper response!

They can do both! There are hundreds of volunteers ready to help!

[rumpel]

7. Have written with high priority.

[The Stranger]

8. Kicked and recommended.

[iconoclastic cat]

37. Thanks! Maybe I can get one more recommend. For the pets, not my ego.

[hyphenate]

10. Can't get through!

Mailbox is full, and they don't have a backup, those assholes!

[doodadem]

13. I just tried to send email

And it bounced. Can we recheck the email address please?

[iconoclastic cat]

16. Strange, it worked for me.

[LisaM]

22. It worked for me

at least I think it did.

[EnfantTerrible]

17. Their attitude so far...

has been that it's ALL a "pet rescue".

[iconoclastic cat]

18. What do you mean? Please explain.

[EnfantTerrible]

23. It strikes me that they have treated the folks

suffering from this disaster as if they were no more than animals. Now, that being said, I hold animals in VERY high regard. The fact that this is even a debate illustrates to me what they think of animals. I was attempting to draw a paralell between that attitude and the actions they've shown regarding the rescue and quite obvious racism. Since my flip comment has required this much explanation, it failed utterly. My :sarcasm: didn't read.. Sorry for any confusion/offense.

[TOOLZ]

19. Just called.

Also mention that a bunch of dead animals isn't going to help the toxic issues any more. Play to the practical, not the heart strings.

[Barack_America]

20. Who did you call? Which number?

I've only been able to get in touch with media relations. They are taking calls, but can only pass them along!

So frustrating I've spoken to people on every level and nobody seems to know what to do. Who is in charge here?

[FlaGranny]

29. Also should be mentioned that

the dogs will be eating human corpses. Horrible to contemplate, but it is probably already happening. Got to do something to shake them up. Ask them how it will look if dogs start eating corpses. On second thought, that may be a BAD idea. Maybe they'll just start shooting them.

Morbid!

[jilln]

117. that's what they've been doing in Iraq...

rather than clear the bodies out. Or maybe not create dead bodies in the first place? I dunno, it's just a thought...

[Ravenseye]

21. The Dishonorable Michael Brown

I'll be damned if I address that fuckup as 'the honorable'

[iconoclastic cat]

25. Yes, he's a bastard. But don't say that on the phone.

[rumpel]

27. Or a letter

[Kindigger]

26. On CNN

They were arguing with a BLIND woman, telling her she couldn't take her seeing eye dog! :mad:

[iconoclastic cat]

30. How the hell is that legal?

[Mutley]

58. I saw that. How fucking disgusting!

[Bryn]

74. Oh, I am furious!!

I have a hearing dog named Shane. If they won't let me take Shane, then they won't be able to take me neither. This is supposed to be illegal for anyone to take a service dog from a handicapped person. It's also just very wrong to take pets away or let them die, not to save them. Every one of them is precious. I have a service dog and 5 beloved cats.

[Lecky]

75. How horrible!

I can't bare to watch the TV when they show the people upset over their pets they have to leave behind...I just start bawling like a baby.

[iconoclastic cat]

31. Here are some pics that the gov't won't allow. Careful: very graphic.

But notice the *living* pets in these pics.

http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/IMAGES/neworleansdead

[newswolf56]

80. The bombardment/closure (censorship) of this website tends to...

substantiate the stories floating around a few days ago about the government jamming all "unauthorized" commo channels (including cell phones) out of New Orleans. At the time -- though I have no doubt what happened to New Orleans was deliberate genocide by neglect -- I dismissed the "jamming" allegations as tinfoil hattery. But now the more evidence I see, the more I am driven to the conclusion that the Bush Administration is taking off its proverbial gloves, moving ever-closer to bare-knuckled fascist tyranny -- which means that absolutely nothing should be dismissed as unthinkable (no matter how tinfoil-hat paranoid it might have seemed even a few days ago).

[sinkingfeeling]

32. Had to send email. Called 646-3900 and was transferred to filled

voice mail. Told to try later.

[kittenpants]

34. called & actually spoke with someone

but don't have much hope. The guy didn't seem to have an ounce of compassion for anyone, let alone animals.

[ernstbass]

35. Yep I spoke with a rude young lady

who could have cared less.

[iconoclastic cat]

36. I'm hearing a lot about that kind of crap.

Keep trying, though. Maybe they'll get their act together just to shut us up.

[Barack_America]

38. kick!

[ClayZ]

39. I just (politely) wrote to the heartless thugs!

Shame on them for not ALREADY doing the right thing.

They should be tried for (among other things) "cruelty to animals".

[eleonora]

40. "the honorable"..who came up with this stupid shit?

Is it mainstream? Sounds so ego boosting..:puke:

[iconoclastic cat]

42. I think it's strategery.

On the Kos thread, it was explained that maybe these ignorant twits might be swayed if we appeal to their vanity.

But I really don't care. I'll call him Mother Superior if it saves one life.

[BiggJawn]

44. No, it's traditional...

No matter HOW undeserved the honorific is...

Wouldn't do to address him as "Mr. Head-Up-Ass Dumb-Fuck", y'know....

[iconoclastic cat]

46. I had no idea! Thanks for the edgumucation.

[shance]

41. Got voicemail, and the mailbox is full. They must be getting hammered.

Nice work everyone. :)

[wildflower]

43. Thanks for letting us know. I'm on it. (2nd EDIT: I got through 2nd try.)

Woman who answered said they haven't decided yet.

Would faxing (in addition) help?

wildflower

[iconoclastic cat]

50. Maybe faxing would help. Why not?

[intheflow]

45. Wow! That's the first time I've ever been able to get through

to a federal agency from a DU recommendation. Very cool! Thanks for posting. Nominated!

[walldude]

47. Are all the people rescued first?

I understand that people consider pets a part of the family but if they are going to take resources away from rescuing people then it needs to be put on hold. One family may be traumatized by the loss of a pet but another might be lifted up by the rescue of a human being. I'm sorry but if it came down to a choice where I'd have to give up my family pet to rescue another human then for me there would be no choice.

[iconoclastic cat]

49. The point is that rescuees should be allowed to carry their pets with them

Don't you think that should be allowed?

[lukasahero]

52. Then there's a lot of other threads on this board you can visit

to support the people who need help. Some of us can multitask.

:eyes:

[mondo joe]

53. Would a person be forced to abandon their last possessions?

Would be people be forced to drop their box of family photos in the water in order to leave? Their clothes?

[The Stranger]

63. IT DOES NOT COME DOWN TO A CHOICE OF PEOPLE OR PETS.

[SomewhereOutThere424]

51. Just contacted them

I am personally ashamed by the decisions of people who not rescue animals and make sure people are taken care of first, when many of these rescue boats have enough room for pets and animals aswell. We owe these animals a responsibility we should make good on, it's unconscinable that we'd consider just abandoning them as we see them stranded. It's physically impossible to say to rescue one first, the other later. They won't live and given the resources to simply move over and pick one up here or there, it's sickening we don't make a small and simple effort.

Thank you for posting this topic, I for one believe the animals deserve it and value those who care about humans and animals alike as the greatest members of this nation.

[Mutley]

57. I emailed him...

and managed to be polite and not to mention what a fuckup he is, too. I'm saving that for another email. Heh.

[iconoclastic cat]

59. Thanks! I'm hearing that the voicemail is full.

[iconoclastic cat]

62. Rescues work!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4699327

[iconoclastic cat]

64. NEW NUMBER for FEMA; number is 202-646-2763

This was posted on the Kos thread: new number is 202-646-2763

[lse7581011]

66. I Just Called!

and they wanted my name and phone number! If i disappear overnight everyone will know why!

[Lecky]

69. Thank you so much for posting this :)

Glad we have so many pet lovers here at DU.

[lse7581011]

70. There is NO WAY!

I would leave my four legged "children" behind! They would have to shoot me!

[incapsulated]

65. I emailed them eariler and asked...

If the footage of the authorities killing people's pets (this is the plan) because they wouldn't be saved is something FEMA really wants to see on TV right now.

But then again, they think they're doing fine.

[Lecky]

67. This is important guys!

:kick:

[QuettaKid]

73. KICK!!!

:kick: :kick:

[SiouxJ]

76. Just tried calling and can't get through

I also sent them an email. Thanks for posting this!

It's not only cruel to the animals, it's cruel to the people. They've already lost everything and now they want them to leave family members behind to starve to death too?! Where is the compassion? This is America?

[demo dutch]

78. Can't call but emailed- FL allowed pet rescues during hurricanes!!!!

[goclark]

79. Call them NOW! I just did and the ladydidn't soun busy At All

I told her " first FEMA is guilty of genocide against the Black poeple in New Orleans and now they are trying to kill everyone's pet!

She was not busy enough at all --keep those phones ringing off the hook!

[nicknameless]

81. PLEASE also sign the petition to Mayor Nagin, asking that pets be allowed

to accompany their owners in the mandatory evacuation.
A lot of decisions are being made on the local level too. They need to hear from us.
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/840979272?ltl=1126215174

News reporters are saying that the only sound in New Orleans is "dogs and cats wailing". :cry:

[Cattledog]

84. Done!

[dweller]

85. done

currently over 32,000 sigs.

keep them coming!

dp

[castiron]

94. done both: thanks

[Barack_America]

82. As far as I'm concerned...no news is good news...

I'm not sure this administration could stomach the warmness and fuzziness that is admiting...Yes! We Will Save the Animals!

Let's talk honestly and strategically. Frankly, yesterday was our day. We put in a lot of work and got a lot of results...NBC nightly news story, Larry King spot, etc. But today a lot of dead grandmothers were found in Chalmette, the media's attention span is shifting. There are new horrors and scandals to be found somewhere else.

I think that FEMA wants to help us, not because they care about animals but because they care about their own asses. Therefore, we need to convince them of two things: 1. That this is a way to redeem themselves, to show that they are not so callous (which they are of course, but whatever, this is a game) and 2. That they will have American blood on their hands if they try to force people out without their pets (remind them that many people have said that they would rather be shot than leave).

That being said I think that even if they DO decide to allow their forces to join the rescue, it may not be some grand announcement but rather a whispered "it's okay, pass it down" kind of thing. Then they'll jump in and promote the reunions or something.

What I'm trying to say here is don't demand an answer...keep the hackles down until you either hear something from the animal rescue groups or hear that people are being dragged out of their houses.


Meant this more as a kick rather than a rant, sorry.

[Barack_America]

83. Women pulls gun on cops; refuses evac without dogs...

Now HERE'S a strategy that I hadn't thought of before!

From Nola.com

"our local news showed an older lady being taken out by force when she pulled a gun on NOLA cops trying to make her leave.It looked like the Garden DistrictThey did also take her dogs and said they would al be taken to the convention center.Wonder what happens to the dogs there????"

[lynettebro440]

86. It appears that we have filled this womans

voice mail box. Would not let me leave a message. Way to go folks. I would suggest running this again tomorrow for all of us who were unable to talk to them. Thanks..

Kicked and Nominated.

:kick:

[iconoclastic cat]

89. Did you try the new number? NEW NUMBER for FEMA: 202-646-2763

[nicknameless]

96. Called. Told there were over 100 (I'm sure there's more) names on their

list. I was told that FEMA is doing some rescues in dry areas. When I asked about the rescues of people in areas still in standing water, I was told that those are being conducted by Urban Search and Rescue (no phone # or email address given). I asked that FEMA please honor their written policy of rescuing animals along with their owners.

[redacted]

87. Done. Just sent email.

[nicknameless]

90. Getting desperate. I don't trust FEMA. So I sent an email to Oprah.

Below is my not-very-well written, but heartfelt email to Oprah.

Dear Oprah,

PLEASE try to help the animal victims of Katrina. Many of their owners are risking their own lives by staying rather than be separated from their beloved companions. To many, having a pet ripped from their arms is no different than having their child taken from them. There are enough broken hearts and lives -- in New Orleans especially. News reporters are saying that the only sound that they're hearing there is "dogs and cats wailing." The government on a local and federal level is doing little or nothing to stop this tragedy. There is no other individual I know of that can move mountains like you can. Please think of your own furry babies Oprah, and think about how you would feel if they were stranded, without food or water for days, in those horrific conditions. Please try to do something -- anything -- to save these precious family members.

Very gratefully,
xxxxxxx

http://www2.oprah.com/email/email_landing.jhtml

[iconoclastic cat]

91. People: Read this! Decision will be made TONIGHT!

I just talked to the guy at the new phone number (202-646-2763) and he said that they are going to be making this decision TONIGHT! They are apparently in a meeting RIGHT NOW, and the guy on the phone is taking our phone numbers and names, petition-style, up to the meeting! Keep calling!

[peacebuzzard]

92. Still taking numbers. EVERYONE CALL

I just called and left my name and no. and stated my concern.

[iconoclastic cat]

93. Yeah, the guy said that they are presenting names and phone #'s

in a petition-style database.

[QuettaKid]

95. KICK!!! KEEP CALLING!!!

.

[iconoclastic cat]

97. Thanks for the kick!

[flvegan]

98. Mailbox at that number full...transfer futile...call terminated. WTF?

[iconoclastic cat]

99. Use the new number: 202-646-2763 (6:30 CST)

[Name removed]

100. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[iconoclastic cat]

101. Healthy pets and people can be saved NOW. Your post is not helpful.

We need to get the word out.

[LisaL]

103. Oh give it up. You artilce is about

terminally ill patients on feeding tubes. WTF does it have to do with healthy pets without feeding tubes?

[Name removed]

104. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[iconoclastic cat]

106. Okay, okay, let's just relax.

I misunderstood your point. Let's not let the stress of this situation start to send us snapping at one another. Thank you very much for making this point.

[Sterling]

102. Kick

Kick

[Barack_America]

105. VICTORY!!!! US Newswire:

U.S. Coast Guard and National Guard Respond to Pleas to Help Animals; Government Search & Rescue Agencies Reportedly Authorized to Rescue Pets

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=52959

YEA!!!!! So many pets will be saved!!

[dusty64]

107. Excellent!

:kick:

[Lecky]

111. Oh yay!

Great news indeed!

[nicknameless]

108. Another kick for pets in need.

Thank you so much for this thread, iconoclastic cat
:kick:

[iconoclastic cat]

109. And thank everyone for helping the helpless. You are all heroes.

[Rhiannon12866]

110. I sent an e-mail...

Dear Mr. Brown,
I understand a decision is upcoming on whether pets will be allowed to accompany their owners in the final evacuation of New Orleans. As the companion of two small dogs, I can tell you most emphatically, I would never agree to leave my home if it meant leaving my pets behind. Never. If that meant that I was subject to arrest, or even in danger of drowning, I could still never do it. And I know more people that I can count who feel exactly the same way. People who are refusing to leave their pets is certainly one very credible reason for the evacuation hold-outs. So I urge you, as someone with compassion for animals, to allow the residents of New Orleans to keep their pets with them. It will make your job much easier and save countless New Orleans residents, who have already suffered so much, considerable pain and grief. Thank you.

[QuettaKid]

112. how did this story turn out??

did our phone calls work? and if so, wouldn't it be great if there was a phone number for impeachment!?!?

[Rhiannon12866]

Hopefully, in our favor. Read the following thread.

As for a phone number to call for impeachment, a couple of weeks ago someone called, asking for a pretty large donation for the Democratic party. I told the guy that I'd come through, but only if he could guarantee me an impeachment. He laughed out loud...:-)

Check out this thread, for the animals...

Attention Animal Lovers!! We Have VICTORY!!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=4702550&mesg_id=4702550

[Rhiannon12866]

113. Hopefully, in our favor. Read the following thread.

As for a phone number to call for impeachment, a couple of weeks ago someone called, asking for a pretty large donation for the Democratic party. I told the guy that I'd come through, but only if he could guarantee me an impeachment. He laughed out loud...:-)

Check out this thread, for the animals...

Attention Animal Lovers!! We Have VICTORY!!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=4702550&mesg_id=4702550

[ailsagirl]

114. kick

[ailsagirl]

115. Shoot-- the phone keeps ringing and ringing. Anyone else get through?

[Barack_America]

116. General Honore has just announced that NG troops going...

door-to-door will be supplied with cages to rescue animals trapped inside.

I think we won... =)

[ailsagirl]

119. Oh that's great... THANK YOU :=D

:bounce:

[Contrary1]

121. Is there someone I can forward an address of a home...

in New Orleans to check for 2 dogs left behind?

[Maraya1969]

118. Just spoke with a very nice woman and she said the Humane Society

is there getting the animals out. She said the information in the original thread is not exactly right. (?) But she said to sign the petition here:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/840979272?ltl=1126294501

[ailsagirl]

120. kick