Dogs, Cats From Flooded Houston Shelters Arrive In Waukegan
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Dozens of cats and dogs from the Houston-area arrived in Chicago Monday afternoon after being evacuated from shelters in flooded areas.
CBS 2's Mai Martinez reports that in all, 118 cats and dogs made the trip to Waukegan.
The non-profit "Wings Of Rescue" foot the bill for the flight; this was just one of many since Harvey hit.
"We've been flying every day almost since the hurricane hit," said Damian Cross, who's with the organization. "Today, we exceeded 1,000 pets saved."
Plane full of evacuated shelter pets from Houston arrives in Waukegan. @cbschicago #hurricaneharvey #rescue pic.twitter.com/IEsm8Qtfog
— Mai Martinez (@MaiReports) September 4, 2017
From here, the animals were loaded into personal cars and vans to be transported to rescue organizations in Illinois and Indiana.
Colette Bradley with The Anti-Cruelty Society said they have foster families already lined up, adding, "Some that can't go to foster will stay in our shelter and become available for adoption. We've got to make sure they're all healthy."
The Anti-Cruelty Society is taking 86 of the cats and dogs. The others have foster homes waiting for them thanks to Magnificent Mutts, a Hillside-based animal rescue.
"I called a lot of my volunteers last minute. I said, 'I need help, we have extra dogs coming,' and boom, they're here," said Linda Latelle, who's with Magnificent Mutts. "I'm honored to be able to help."
And Latelle is not alone.
"It's not just the people, it's the family," Cross said through tears. "I mean, if you just look around you can see -- all of these people are volunteers. They want to help and they know what it means to save a life."
The Anti-Cruelty Society says some of the pets might be available for adoption later this week.
If you'd like to help with rescue efforts, check out these organizations for further information: Magnificent Mutts, Wings Of Rescue, the Anti-Cruelty Society and the Humane Society.