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Home  Outdoors Hurricanes and Storms Hurricane Katrina FWC Officers Deliver Dog Food to Wildlife Rescue Center
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09-13-2005 |
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FWC OFFICERS DELIVER DOG FOOD TO WILDLIFE RESCUE CENTER
September 13, 2005
While deployed in Biloxi, Miss., Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC) law enforcement officers have taken on the mission of
helping survivors recover from Hurricane Katrina.
But, in addition to helping the people, wildlife and pets are also receiving assistance from FWC.
Officer Jimmy Jordan, from Alachua County, made a special run Tuesday
morning to the Wildlife Care and Rescue Center to deliver 500 pounds of
dog food to Tammi Carson, a volunteer at the center.
The center was destroyed during the storm, and the animals had to be moved out to volunteers’ homes.
“Right now, I have a red-tailed hawk, three doves and two crows in
small cages in my back yard, a baby duck in the bathtub, a screech owl
in my garage and an assortment of rats, baby opossums and squirrels in
my living room,” Carson said. “Many of our cages were destroyed during
the hurricane. I’m just putting them where I can.”
Carson and her two children, Clay, 8, and Chandee, 6, rode out the
storm in Biloxi. Their house made it through the storm, but the
back yard didn’t fare as well.
“I can’t believe I’ve lost all my trees. I’ve been here eight
years and have released so many critters out here. I can’t stand
to come out here. This breaks my heart,” she said with a catch in
her voice.
“It’s amazing what you take for granted. My son has an iguana and
we can’t find vegetables for him. I’ve been scrounging through
garbage looking for whatever I can find for him. You just get so
used to going to the store and getting what you need. In a
situation like this, you simply can’t,” she said.
“But today, some of my prayers were answered. I was still dozing
this morning when I got a phone call from FWC saying they had dog food
for me. I asked if they had any cat food too, since we need that
to feed to some of the animals. After I hung up, I went back to
sleep. I bolted up in bed, grabbed my phone and made sure I had
gotten that call. I thought I was dreaming. I couldn’t believe
it. We need that food so badly,” she said.
According to Lt. Scott Kihei, patrol supervisor for Columbia and Baker
counties, “We heard about Tammi needing the food from one of the
Mississippi Marine Patrol dispatchers we’re working with on this
deployment. We had plenty of dog food for our K-9s, so we wanted
to help.”
“Officer Jordan came this morning and dropped off 10 50-pound
bags. Let me tell you, there are some happy dogs in the
neighborhood tonight,” she said.
In addition to the wildlife she’s caring for, Carson has three dogs and
she has been feeding the cats and dogs for those neighbors who
evacuated before the storm.
Jordan also has been taking milk to the Carson household daily.
Doctors have instructed Carson’s daughter to consume dairy products
every day. Jordan ensures she has a constant supply. “We
are trying to get together volunteers to round up all the strays in the
area too. We have a big task ahead of us,” Carson said.
“The Wildlife Care and Rescue Center is a non-profit organization, and
we need just about everything from medical supplies to food and cages
as well as office materials.
“When the center director and I were going through the destroyed
building, both of us were in tears. But I told her that we are
going to come back from this. We’re going to get this center up
and running again. “And it’s folks like the FWC officers who are
going to help. I can’t begin to explain what this donation means
to us,” Carson said.
Anyone interested in donating to the Wildlife Care and Rescue Center
can send donations to Tammi Carson at P.O. Box 4244, Biloxi, MS 39531.
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