How to save people? Save their animals; Katrina lesson: Evacuees won't leave pets.

(Note: Updates on fostering/adoption and another plea for help from Jane Garrison are at the end of this media/legislative alert.)

The front page of the Wednesday, September 28, Philadelphia Inquirer has an article headed, "How to save people? Save their animals; Katrina lesson: Evacuees won't leave pets."

It tells us, "After New Orleans residents died because they wouldn't abandon their pets, emergency planners from across the country began embracing a new reality: They can best save people by saving animals, too."

And we learn that many states have started to plan for animal evacuations, and that "On Thursday, five U.S. congressmen introduced a bipartisan bill that would mandate states and municipalities to provide evacuation plans for pets and service animals, such as guide dogs, in order to qualify for FEMA funding."

That bill is H.R. 3858, the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act, or PETS Act. Please sign a petition in support of it at http://go.care2.com/e/gfO/bR/oco4

The front page story, which you'll find on line at http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/12759675.htm, opens the door for letters on various aspects of how we treat members of other species. The Philadelphia Inquirer takes letters at Inquirer.Letters [at] phillynews.com

The Katrina aftermath is no doubt still covered in your local paper, providing opportunities for letters on this issue. Please consider a letter to your editor, in support of the bill. Feel free to ask me for help if you have any difficulty finding the correct email address for a letter to the editor. And I am always happy to edit letters. Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor.

Some of you have written asking where to find out about fostering or adopting Katrina animals. Best Friends has a form at http://www.bestfriends.org/HF/FI.cfm

Finally: An update from New Orleans: A few days after forwarding Jane Garrison's letter pleading for help with New Orleans animal rescue, I received a gratifying note from Jane's husband telling me, "She has 45 teams in the city; the largest yet since the beginning." However Priscilla Gargalis, a superb activist with whom Jane and I have both worked, is in regular touch with Jane and has just heard that Jane still needs to get to thousands of addresses where people have reported they left animals -- animals who are being found barely alive or have starved to death. Jane is again begging for help. As the Lamar-Dixon cite winds down, her location may change, but Priscilla will have the information, is urging people to get down to Jane immediately, and has written, "If you need more information, or have any questions, please email me at pgargalis [at] yahoo.com."
I urge you to contact her and to go if you possibly can, and I send my heartfelt thanks to those who have already been.
I send thanks, on behalf of the animals, for any helpful step taken, whether it be monetary support, or letters to legislators or the media, which contribute to the pubic debate and influence public policy.


(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. If you forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts, please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)