Urgent From PETA: Ask the Government to Allow PETA to Testify at Katrina Hearings; Plus, Updates From the Field

Please take a moment right now to send an e-mail to Rep. Tom Davis and Rep. Henry Waxman of the House of Representatives Government Reform Committee, which will hold hearings this Thursday, September 15, on the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina.

Please ask the committee chair, Rep. Davis, to allow PETA to testify about the plight of animals affected by disasters such as Katrina during their hearings. Let him know that the suffering of human hurricane victims was only heightened by the federal blockades that prevented humane agents from rescuing animals and by evacuators' insistence that animals be abandoned to die. Please also urge Reps. Davis and Waxman to ensure that the well-being of animals be included in any local, state, or federal disaster response plan. It is absolutely crucial to call or send an e-mail today and tell your neighbors to do the same.

E-mail Rep. Davis or call him today at (202) 225-1492.
E-mail Rep. Waxman or call him today at (202) 225-3976.

News From the Front Lines

On Monday, another 10 PETA staff members and volunteers flew to New Orleans to help in the massive animal rescue and care efforts there. PETA's team of experienced rescue workers has been toiling around the clock to rescue stranded animals still suffering in the city. Listen to our team leader's reports from the field as they become available and read accounts of the team's life-saving efforts at PETA.org.

"It's a surreal environment" where PETA's team is working, reports team leader Laura Brown. On Friday, the team found a terrified dog missing his left eye and hiding in sewage under his guardians' crushed home. He was very frightened but was finally lured out of the wreckage with wet food and taken to one of our rescue vans, where he was given a comfortable, air-conditioned place to rest and take his first drink of fresh water in over a week.

After saving 18 dogs on Friday, the team battled floodwaters on Saturday for more than 12 hours. They rescued a severely matted and bony Chow dragging a broken chain from her neck and running at large. She was loaded into our van and, after a meal, quickly fell asleep.

The team later made a heartbreaking discovery in an abandoned house-crates full of dehydrated lovebirds and finches stacked atop one another and suffering next to the rotting remains of their cagemates. Fifty "terribly stressed" survivors quickly flocked to the water dishes that the team placed inside their enclosures. The team then waded through waist-deep water for seven blocks to rescue a dog who had been left behind with only chicken eggshells and rotten corncobs for nourishment. Soon she had fresh food and water and enjoyed a "water-taxi ride" to our air-conditioned van, where she got her share of belly rubs and scratches and joined the Chow in a nap. The scene was repeated countless times over.

Animals Will Now Be Evacuated With Their Families!

At PETA headquarters, an official with the Federal Emergency Management Agency told us Friday afternoon that the agency had received many phone calls about the forced abandonment of animals in New Orleans and that such orders are no longer followed or issued. Congratulations—this is your victory! That same day, Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, commander of the First U.S. Army and the official in charge in New Orleans—who PETA asked on September 6 to allow animals to be evacuated with their families—announced that his agents will have animal carriers to facilitate evacuating cats and dogs as they evacuate the city's remaining human residents.

Your Help Is Still Urgently Needed

Please help us turn up the pressure on those who have the ability to ensure better plans for animals caught in future disasters, including President George W. Bush and Congress.

Thank you for your time and your compassion for animals.

Sincerely,



Ingrid E. Newkirk
President

P.S. Your efforts on behalf of animals in Louisiana have truly made a difference, but there is still so much work to be done for the thousands of dogs, cats, and other animals that remain in harm's way. Please take a moment to donate to PETA's Animal Emergency Fund and help us ensure that no animal will ever endure the tragedy of the last two weeks again.

P.P.S. Please send this e-mail to your friends, family, colleagues, and anyone else you can think of who might lend their voice and support to these vital efforts!