When floodwaters stranded dozens of pets in Pinetops, county lines didn’t stand in the way of rescuers, with many coming from Wilson to lend a hand — or a boat.
Kim Edmondson, president of the Wilson County Humane Society, said news on Sunday of a stranded Pinetops pup in a tree captured her attention. She and fellow rescuer Kristin Lippert, vice president of the local Humane Society chapter, went to social media to coordinate help when they realized the need was greater than one Labrador retriever.
“Someone else we know posted on Facebook that they had been evacuated from the same area (as the dog on TV) and they had to leave six dogs at their home,” Edmondson said. “She was pleading for people to help.”
Humane Society secretary and foster coordinator Celena Edwards, treasurer Tammy Page and rescue coordinator Jana Lake paired up with Alex Layton to head into the floodwaters around Bynum Mill Creek. Authorities were initially apprehensive about letting them head into floodwaters in a john boat to get the dogs, forcing rescuers on Sunday to sign a waiver, but soon realized the help was needed.
Edwards and Layton retrieved three of the woman’s dogs, then headed back into the murky water to provide salvation for other pets — dogs, cats and even a chinchilla — abandoned during the evacuation. The Humane Society coordinated resources at the site, including crates to contain the rescues and food. With each trip to dry land, Layton, with the Hungry Pet Food Bank, took notes about news of other stranded animals.
“Some dogs that had been left in pens were deceased. There was another yard with three pit bulls, but only one had survived,” Edmondson recalled. “It was a flood of emotions, especially when one of the woman’s six dogs that was rescued was Austin, who was a foster failure we’d gotten from the Wilson County Animal Shelter three years ago.”
Rescuers went from house to house looking for pets, saving cats from atop microwaves and shivering dogs perched on couches or beds. When the group got word of a horse that was up to his neck in water, Layton reportedly wouldn’t go home until they made an attempt to rescue it.
“They took the boat and led the horse through the water, having to literally hold his head above the water two times,” Edmondson said. “We were all in tears when they got him to the road, and he stumbled because he had been so mired down.”
As floodwaters started to recede, they took feed to other horses and animals that couldn’t be moved. It was the rescue of an English bulldog named Pearl that also tugged at their heartstrings.
Edmondson said the owner had been with her dying sister at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville when Hurricane Matthew hit. The rescue crew had seen the pink-collared pup on a past trip into the floodwaters, but it was scared and wouldn’t come to volunteers. The owner called her adult son, who couldn’t swim but put on a life vest and headed out in the boat with rescuers.
“He was petrified, but he came back 20 minutes later with the dog in his lap,” Edmondson said. “The lady had lost her sister the day before, she’d lost her home, but her dog survived.”
Floodwaters had cut off the area near Pinetops from access by rescuers from Rocky Mount, Tarboro or Pitt, but the roads from Wilson County were clear with volunteers eager to step in to help. Many of the organization’s network of foster families were already full prior to the hurricane, so the flood exacerbated an already tenuous situation.
“The Friday before the storm, the Wilson shelter had eight dogs we had committed to get that had nothing to do with the flood,” Edmondson said. “Eight dogs needed to get out by Tuesday morning without any of this other influx is challenging itself, so it was a joint effort with rescues all over to work together for a common cause.”
The Humane Society had existing relationships with rescues up north, so several plane loads in recent days have made room for flood survivors but more help is needed. Many pet owners have been displaced by the floodwaters, limiting their ability to care for their four-legged family members. The Humane Society and other rescues have stepped up throughout eastern North Carolina to foster and board family pets along with strays.
“I do want to thank the community for the outpouring of support to help get flood dogs out, but please know that the need will be continuing for weeks to come,” Edmondson said. “Some owners aren’t ready to surrender the animals, but in two weeks or so, they may realize they can’t keep these dogs, and there will be a big need to care for the dogs that are surrendered.”
Edmondson said the shared mission of the volunteers highlighted the similarities that have largely been downplayed in recent months.
“Who you’re voting for, what bathroom you use or what race you are didn’t matter because there was a common purpose. It was all about the animals and helping people,” she said. “It was refreshing to see so many people come together, through all the emotions, to help one another.”
The Humane Society is urging residents to give pet supplies, such as food and crates, as well as monetary donations to cover medical care and housing costs. Many of the animals rescued from Pinetops were not up to date on vaccinations and had not been spayed or neutered, but Edmondson said the owners are receptive and the Humane Society volunteers hope to support responsible pet ownership.
“The need to rescue dogs from the Wilson shelter doesn’t go away because of the flood, so we want to continue our focus with them,” she said. “We need fosters, we need people who can help transport dogs, and we need people to donate to the cause. You don’t have to give $100 or something to save an animal. Just $37.50 spays or neuters a pet, so donations of every amount make a difference.”
bhandgraaf@wilsontimes.com | 265-7821
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