Terrific "Aw, lookathat!" pictures at the site:

http://www.wral-tv.com/news/wral/rebuild/1999/1007-pet-reunion/

Thursday October 7, 1999 10:09 PM

One by One, Pets and Families Reunite

RALEIGH (WRAL) -- They are the Hurricane Floyd's forgotten victims; beloved family pets abandoned when the water started rising. While emergency shelters for people are closing, shelters for animals are still full. Some have been in kennels for weeks, just waiting to go home.

One lucky dog got his break.

Four-year-old Tiny went head to head with Hurricane Floyd and won. His family did not have time to grab him when they were rescued from flood waters in Princeville.

"He was in the house the whole time we left. We didn't know it was going to rise that high, so I was very worried about him," says Yolanda Grant.

So it was up to Tiny to make it on his own. It was a challenge he lived up to.

"I was saying that I know Tiny likes to jump, so I figured if the water didn't get up on top of the dressers that's where Tiny would be. Evidently, that's where Tiny was," she says.

Since being rescued, Tiny has been staying at a makeshift shelter run by the NCSU Vet School and the Humane Society.

The reunion touched everyone at the shelter.

"That is why we're here," says Leigh Ann Wilder of the Vet School. "That's why everyone is putting in long hours, and we have all these volunteers that are helping us. It was really great for everybody's spirits to finally put somebody back in touch with their pet."

The Grant family lost another dog during the flood, but it was found a few days ago. Tiny was the missing piece to the puzzle.

"He survived, we survived. We're one big happy family again," says Grant.

More than 400 animals were rescued from the floods in eastern North Carolina. Some have health problems, broken bones and parasites from drinking contaminated water.

Vet students, local veterinarians and volunteers are providing medical attention, food, shelter and tender loving care until their owners claim them or another home is found.

If your pet is missing, you can call (919) 715-9679.

Some pets, along with photos, descriptions can be found on the Humane Association's Web site. More pets will be added soon.

A photo album of all the rescuees will be available at local animal shelters sometime next week.

Animals that are not claimed will be available for adoption beginning November 1.

If you would like to make a donation, call (800) HUMANE-1 or send a check to the North Carolina Veterinary Medical Foundation at 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606.

[Sincere thanks to fellow animal-lovers who have sent donations to help--the vet school also does sterling work re spaying/neutering/shooting feral cat colonies--trapping and helping wild cats is interesting work!]

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), October 08, 1999

Answers

Old Git, thank you for the reminder about pets. That is one Y2K problem I have been thinking of: what to do with my cat if I have to bug out. It's nice to hear that some animals in NC got reunited with their people, even if many of them did not make it.

That reminds me of a famous dog around here (Sacramento) named Rodeo. When everything north of here was flooding a couple of years ago, he was seen on the roof of a house that was about to wash away. TV helicopter hovered inches over the water while a cameraman enticed the dog on board. Rodeo was finally reunited with his family, after making friends with everybody at the TV station. That image of the dog on the roof will stay with me every time I hear about floods. It also makes me think of how to take my cat with me if I cannot stay home.

-- Margaret J (janssm@aol.com), October 08, 1999.

That's great Old Git!

Margaret, there was some discussion on threads, about cats (and pets), over on the Prep Forum...

TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) Preparation Forum (Y2K Prep Only Discussions)

http:// www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a.tcl?topic= TimeBomb%202000%20%28Y2000%29%20Preparation%20Forum

I recall one thread about cats that doesnt seem to be under the Pet Care category. Maybe Old Git or BigDog can help you find it.

Diane, with two cats... ready to go

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), October 08, 1999.

Old Git, thank you once again for good posts on these pets. It inspired me to "get with it" and get those pet tags right away for my two cats, "just in case." Have spread the word to two other GIs, and they are ordering also.

Suggestion for others: find a name tag maker who will put your cell phone # on back of tag too. There has been talk on forums about those possibly staying up longer if the telephone lines go down at Y2K, and that is what I'd be taking with me if I had to evacuate. However, I don't intend voluntarily going anywhere without my feline family!

-- Elaine Seavey (Gods1sheep@aol.com), October 08, 1999.

Margaret,

The thing to do with your cat if you bug out is to, I hope, take her with you.

I'm hot-link challenged, but please see this thread:

http://greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=0018CK

called Bugging Out With Cats - thought about it? I started it but had lots of good help.

-- Scat (sgcatique@webtv.net), October 08, 1999.