Dog Rescued From 2018 Camp Fire In Paradise Survives Its 2nd Wildfire
AUBURN (CBS13) — Ziggy the dog was rescued from one devastating California wildfire - and has now survived another one.
Kristen Day says her mom's dog was in the house when she left Wednesday morning. Then the River Fire started in Placer County - prompting frantic evacuation orders that forced many people to leave almost everything behind.
She feared the worst, but later that night she got a call from the Placer County Animal Shelter: Ziggy had been found wandering a nearby road.
Miraculously, this isn't the first wildfire he survived.
"My mom got him a few years ago after his previous owners lost everything in the Paradise fire," Day said, describing how Ziggy was also rescued from the 2018 Camp Fire. "And now he's been rescued from the River Fire."
Too often during wildfires, people do not leave because evacuation shelters do not accept pets. But, the Placer County Animal Shelter is doing what they can to calm frantic pet owners.
Animal Control officers are canvassing evacuation areas, looking for animals and getting them out of harm's way.
People are also being urged to be proactive and call 211 if they need a place for their pets to stay.
"We have lots of dog kennels and open cat kennels, and we have assistance provided by our partner shelters," said Katie Ingram with the Placer County Animal Shelter.
They've even taken in a big, a steer, some chickens, and a goat.
"We have plenty of paddocks available, we have a pasture for livestock - for large animals," Ingram said.
The shelter expects more animals to come in as the River Fire grows and thousands of people are displaced.
Day says she just feels lucky that Ziggy survived.
"We're hoping [Ziggy has] more [than 9 lives]," Day said.
Day's home was spared, but just a couple hundred yards away a barn went up in flames.