BALTIMORE — Ahead of the predicted devastation from hurricane Ida, hundreds of pets were evacuated to keep them safe. Some of them have made it all the way to Harford county.
The operation was headed up by BISSELL Pet Foundation to free up space in overcrowded Louisiana shelters where animals were in danger of being harmed by the storm.
Now those shelters will be able to better house pets displaced during the hurricane.
"It allows for the shelters to have space for other dogs who are in crisis, who have been left behind, who need to be reunited with their owners," said The Hero Rescue President Heather Lafleur.
The dogs were vetted and then flown to Virginia Wednesday, where representatives from 10 rescues from Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia waited to pick them up.
The Hero Rescue in Jarrettsville is the only one from Maryland to receive dogs from the flight. All they knew up until arrival was that it would get four puppies and two adults.
"It was absolutely like Christmas morning not knowing what we were getting. When the dogs came into the airport, we were unboxing crates and figuring out which ones we actually had," said Lafleur.
This isn’t the first time The Hero Rescue stepped up for animals in the face of a natural disaster. Last year, they saved puppies from Puerto Rico after a devastating earth quake.
"I think the best thing you can do as a rescue is be proactive in these situations and prevent the dogs from getting into crisis," said Lafleur.
Their puppies will be available for adoption after a two- week quarantine and the adults, who are heartworm positive, need foster to adopt families.
Check out their arrival below.
