It has been just over a week since the storm brought hurricane-force winds to much of the metroplex.
It caused long-lasting power outages, home damage, and a crisis at local animal shelters.
But even before the onslaught of storms lately, so many shelters were at or over capacity because of the busy kitten and puppy season this spring.
The bad weather has overwhelmed shelters and now, even more dogs and cats around DFW desperately need a home.
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GARLAND ANIMAL SERVICES
Garland was one of the hardest hit areas in the May 28 storm. Animal Services has responded to over 500 calls since then, bringing in an more than 220 animals.
To browse a full list of adoptable animals at Garland Animal Services, click here.
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Many escaped when fences were blown down or destroyed while others were strays called in during the frenzy.
Garland has been able to reunite about 35 pets with their owners but the struggle continues.
This week, two nonprofits – Archangel Animal Network and PINK Happy Tails Transport – helped fly out 14 dogs to shelters in Iowa and Minnesota. Transporting animals to shelters that have space helps make more space to take in animals during crisis moments.
"We're playing Tetris every day. We're trying to move things around, create as much space as possible,” said Art Munoz, director of Garland Animal Services.
Perhaps the biggest immediate need is foster volunteers, who temporarily take in shelter dogs at their own homes to help ease the strain on the kennel space. All supplies are provided for foster volunteers free of charge.
"I mean, fostering is huge for us right now. Even if you can get a dog out for a day or two, that helps tremendously. And right now, we have well over 320 animals in the shelter. And so we definitely need help with fostering,” said Munoz.
Right now, these are the biggest donation needs for Garland Animal Services:
- Towels
- Pet beds
- Cleaning supplies
DALLAS ANIMAL SERVICES
In the meantime, Dallas Animal Services is also trying to find homes and fosters for hundreds of dogs and cats.
DAS officials said the shelter has been over capacity for well over a year. The recent storms are again making it worse.
The shelter’s dog/puppy capacity is at 131% and the cat/kitten capacity is at 141% this week.
DAS said the storms have been a lesson for many – pets should be part of everyone’s emergency preparedness plan.
“Accidents happen even to the most careful pet owners and we strongly encourage all pet owners to ensure their pet is wearing a properly fitted collar with ID tags at all times and to get their pets microchipped,” the shelter said in a statement to NBC 5.
DAS is able to offer microchips for a subsidized rate of just $10 through the Spay Neuter Network. Anyone can make an appointment online by clicking here.
If you are looking for your lost pet, please visit BeDallas90.org/lost to view pets at the shelter, read tips to aid in your search for your pet, and submit a lost pet report to Petco Love Lost, which uses facial recognition technology to help reunite owners with their lost pets.
These are the biggest donation needs for DAS right now:
- Blankets
- Towels
- Cat and dog treats
- Kitten formula
- Un-opened pet food
The shelter is hoping to beef up the supply in their Pet Food Pantry, which helps struggling pet owners. Most owner surrenders come from people who can't afford to feed their pets.
Anyone interested in fostering can visit BeDallas90.org/foster to sign up. Their greatest need is for puppy and kitten fosters, or nursing moms with litters. This Facebook group posts updates on urgent foster needs.
Another huge need right now is volunteers for the Doggy Daycation program, which allows members of the public to take a shelter dog for the day and take the pups on walks or a relaxing day at home. Click here for more details.
CLEAR THE SHELTERS
NBC 5 and Telemundo 39 are committed to our annual Clear the Shelters initiative.
For the past 10 years, our stations have helped our local shelters find forever homes for over 60,000 local animals.
Operation Kindness, one of our shelter partners, reported that they broke past records in 2023 by taking in 5,967 animals into its care, up 18% from the year before, and from just January to March of this year, Operation Kindness has already taken in 1,495 dogs and cats in need of medical support, foster care, food, shelter, and love.
For a full list of shelters across North Texas and their contact information to adopt, click here.
