After about 400 animals were taken in by the Alachua County Humane Society because of Hurricane Irma, about 360 cats and dogs will be sent off in cars and planes to make room for more animals.
The majority of pets that Alachua County Humane Society took in from local shelters in 10 Florida counties arrived Monday. Now, the humane society is sending these animals north to find their forever homes and to make space for animals that were displaced during the hurricane and needed to be evacuated from South Florida, said Margot DeConna, director of development at ACHS.
“We did something totally crazy that has never been done before in our community,” she said. “We took in every animal, from every shelter, in every rural, surrounding county.”
Four staff members from the Charleston Animal Society arrived in Gainesville on Thursday morning to load 20 to 30 cats and up to 80 dogs into their transport van and a large trailer. After the animals’ northern journey, they will be guaranteed adoption, DeConna said.
While some animals are driven, others will be flown to their new northern homes. About 260 animals will be transported via two airplanes to Michigan and Wisconsin, she said.
The mass animal exodus is all a part of the humane society’s effort to make Alachua County a no-kill county.
By taking in animals from shelters in the region, the humane society freed up space in those shelters for all the animals they expect to be brought in because of the storm. The aim is to prevent local shelters from being forced to euthanize animals in order to meet the high demand after the storm.
“We think that no animal should be euthanized for lack of space,” she said.
David Dawson, a UF materials science and engineering senior, considered bringing five kittens he found before the hurricane to ACHS but feared shelters would be too crowded.
The 21-year-old found the kittens huddled under a tarp covering a bike rack in his backyard. Instead of taking the kittens to a shelter, Dawson and his roommates built a home for Charlie, Skyy, Toothless, Sophie and Bartholomeow in their bathroom out of old boxes and the new UF football T-shirts featuring Steve Spurrier.
“We didn’t think they were old enough to possibly survive the storm on their own,” he said.
With hundreds of animals leaving ACHS, there will be more room for kittens like Bartholomeow.
“Once you have one of them, you fall in love,” Dawson said.
@jessica_giles_
jgiles@alligator.org
