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“It’s just something I had to do.” she said.
“I have the skills and they don’t have enough help.”
Accompanying her was Dr. Nancy Mettee, a fellow coworker and veterinarian at Harmony Animal Hospital.
On Friday, September 9th, Monique and Dr. Mettee finished up their work at 5:00 p.m, then left the hospital at 5:30 to catch a 7:30 flight to Atlanta.
“We were greeted by Nita, a wonderful first time volunteer who came to pick us up.” Monique said.
What Monique and Nancy did not know at the time was that Nita was given little information about who she was meeting. Other than an address scribbled on a piece of paper, she had no information on who, how many or what they looked like. The lack of information was a harbinger of things to come.
“Nita drove us into Slidell where, and thank god for the GPS, we found our building.”
Unfortunately, no one was there to greet them. Nita informed them that she was told they were staying on the 3rd floor and they entered the elevator. Once they entered the elevator, they realized they had a slight problem. The elevator only went to the second floor.
“We’re didn’t think we were in the right building. We had no idea where to go, where to sleep. We left the building and found a policeman to ask if he could help us. He couldn’t. Now keep in mind this is almost 3:00 a.m. and we are utterly exhausted.” Monique said.
After being unsuccessful at finding anyone who could help, they turned around and reentered the building, hoping to find someone, anyone who could offer direction. Taking the elevator to the second floor, they found that there was indeed a third floor. The elevator only went to the second floor and one had to walk up to the third floor. Once on the third floor, they found a large room full of cubicles. Inside the cubicles, volunteers were asleep.
Having worked in a lab environment for the last 18 years, this was Monique’s first exposure to a cube farm and the arrangement struck her as rather odd.
“The spaces apparently were on a first come, first serve basis. Nancy, Nita and I finally located an unoccupied cubicle and made our nest.”
Monique finally fell asleep after 3:00, only to be awoken by 6:00 to be taken to the warehouse that was being used to shelter the animals.
“We were exhausted but I don’t think we felt it so much. We knew that there were hundreds of animals that needed our help.” Monique added. "We were running on pure adrenalin at that point."
After eating a quick meal provided by th Red Cross, all three headed over to the warehouse.
“I was expecting to see a lot of animals. And that’s exactly what I was greeted by. There were cages all over and there must have been...and this is a conservative estimate...over 300 animals there. I wasn’t overwhelmed because my thoughts kept revolving around these poor kids...there were so many of them that needed help or that had lost their homes.”
The first thing that struck both Monique and Nancy was the shelter was poorly organized and basic procedures hadn’t been put into place. Medications were not organized, and there didn’t appear to be anyone in charge.
“There was no one who greeted us, or gave direction. We didn’t know what protocols were being used. Of course the last thing we wanted to do was step on anyone’s toes so Nancy set out to organize the medications and I went about medicating the animals.”
The flow of animals never stopped. Dogs and cats, even rabbits and squirrels found there way there. And it wasn’t just mammals. Exotics such as birds, snakes, even a bearded dragon now had a place to call their temporary home.
“The highlight of my first day was a couple that wandered in looking for their dogs. Obviously a crap shoot given the numbers housed there and not to mention the remote possibility that they were found alive and brought in. After much searching, the couple found both of their dogs. The dogs had quite a bit too say and so did the parents. They cried, I cried.” Monique said, tears welling in her eyes at the thought.
It was a scene Monique hoped would be repeated through out the day. Unfortunately, it wasn't.
Monique, Nancy and Nita returned to their “hotel” and were pleasantly surprised when they discovered a single inflatable mattress in addition to a surprise that Nita brought along.
“Nita, bless her heart, had gone out and purchased a double inflatable mattress. I slept well that night.”
They woke again at 6:00 a.m, Sunday to repeat the day before. The upside was that things becoming more organized, processes streamlined.
“Things flowed much better the second day and we even had a repeat of the previous day in the sense that an owner was reunited with her kids. A woman found her 4 dogs. None of them could have been any happier than they were at that moment. You should have seen them.”
On Monday, Monique and Nancy made their one and only house call. Animal Control received a call about a rottweiler and Monique and Nancy accompanied Billy Dwyer, an Animal Control officer out to a home that was miraculously left standing.
“We didn’t know what to expect. Some rottweilers are a bit twitchy and having gone without food for a few days, animals can get aggressive.”
With much trepidation they jumped out of their vehicle and were greeted by three rottweilers emerging from the bushes surrounding the house.
“We recovered two pit bulls as well as four rottweilers. They were all so thin, ribs and vertebrae showing, outlined on their skin, but they were wagging their tails madly. They were just so happy to see someone...anyone. It broke my heart.”
Monique was bone tired and exhausted and looking forward to a night of rest on the inflatable mattress. As she settled in, she was disturbed by something a woman in the cubicle across from her said.
“She warned us that she snored really loudly.” Monique said laughing.
“She even said that her husband sleeps on the floor above her back home. That’s when I left to find another cubicle to sleep in. ”
Red Cross provided them with food and water but couldn’t provide the ability to leave the emotional component out of the rescue work.
“It’s so hard for me to look at these poor animals and not feel like my heart is being ripped out. With humans its different. You can, to an extent, explain things and there is some level of understanding, even with a child. Animals, no matter how hard you try, don’t understand what is happening. But of course you try your best to do so, talking to them as you stitch them up or clean a wound. They stare back, wagging their tail, simply happy that they’re around someone who cares again.”
Monique met a number of wonderful people: Billy Dwyer works as an Animal Control officer with Slidell Animal Control and hasn’t had a day off since the hurricane. Nita Bowers, PHD. A volunteer and a saint. Susan, another volunteer, Brie Caffey, a vet tech, Cathy, a surgical nurse, Laurie and Karen, veterinarians. The list goes on. Different people, different ages, different backgrounds, all possessing the same character traits: Dedicated, great attitudes, caring, passionate, hard workers all.
I asked what the over riding issue was for her, the one positive that she saw in the whole time she spent in Slidell.
“I was surprised at how much attention the animals got during the hurricane aftermath. It tells me that there is a profound shift taking place, that animals are coming into their own, that people who don’t share their lives with animals are starting to realize that you can't count the number of legs on family members. Some family have more that two. Personally, I don’t differentiate between a dog, a cat or a human. I can’t. They’re all life forms worthy of respect and love. I know that many people think that is crazy. But just as many, if not more, understand what I’m talking about. When you mention that your child has four legs, they either get it or they don’t.” Monique said.
Monique will return to the area next weekend with another group of volunteers.
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